Members and concerned stakeholders of the Umuomake family, Obodogwugwu Quarters, Okpanam, in Oshimili North Local Government Area of Delta State, have instituted legal action against the Delta State Government at the State High Court, challenging what they describe as an unlawful and compulsory acquisition of their ancestral land.
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The land in question, located at Akwuogede/Abodei in Obodogwugwu Quarters, Okpanam (hereinafter referred to as “the ancestral land”), is claimed by the family to have been in their peaceful, exclusive, and undisturbed possession from time immemorial and to constitute their communal heritage.
In the suit, filed on 9th September 2025 through their legal representatives, Chief Sir Ifeanyi Ejiofor, Esq. of I.C. Ejiofor & Co., and marked Suit No: AKU/93/2025, the Delta State Government is named as the 1st Defendant, while the Attorney General of Delta State and the Commissioner for Lands, Surveys, and Urban Development are joined as the 2nd and 3rd Defendants, respectively.
The claimants are seeking eight principal reliefs, including: A Declaration that they are the rightful, lawful, and beneficial owners of the land situated at Akwuogede/Abodei, Obodogwugwu Quarters, Okpanam, Oshimili North LGA, Delta State, having been in undisturbed possession from time immemorial.A Declaration that the purported revocation of their proprietary rights, as published in The Pointer Newspaper on 10th May 2025, is unconstitutional, unlawful, irregular, oppressive, ultra vires, and therefore null and void, for failing to comply with the provisions of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), the Land Use Act, and binding judicial precedents.An Order nullifying and setting aside the purported revocation of their ownership rights over the said land.A Declaration that any activity undertaken by the Delta State Government,its officials, agents, or privies such as surveying, demarcating, or mapping out portions of the land, constitutes trespass, intimidation, and unlawful interference with the claimants’ proprietary rights.An Order of Perpetual Injunction restraining the Delta State Government, its agents, privies, representatives, or assigns from acting upon the purported revocation or otherwise interfering with the claimants’ rights over the land.An Award of ₦100,000,000,000.00 (One Hundred Billion Naira) in general, aggravated, and exemplary damages against the Delta State Government for trespass, unlawful interference, economic loss, psychological trauma, intimidation, and desecration of communal heritage.An Award of ₦50,000,000.00 (Fifty Million Naira) as litigation costs, including solicitor’s fees, security expenses, and incidental disbursements and Post-judgment interest at the rate of 10% per annum on the judgment sum from the date of judgment until full satisfaction.
Speaking to our correspondent, Chief Sir Ifeanyi Ejiofor, Esq., counsel to the claimants, confirmed that a hearing date has not yet been assigned as the Delta State Government has not filed any response to the suit at the time of reporting.
Ejiofor stated that the case will likely spark significant discourse on what he described as a “growing trend of unchecked abuse of state power in the guise of compulsory land acquisition under the Land Use Act.”
According to the claimants, their family has exercised uninterrupted, open, exclusive, and peaceful possession of the land for generations, using it for agriculture, residential development, religious purposes, and communal cultural practices. They contend that the land is not only their economic base, but also the nucleus of their cultural identity and generational continuity.
Their concerns escalated in July 2025, when they became aware of a publication in The Pointer Newspaper the Delta State Government’s official gazette,dated Saturday, 10th May 2025, announcing a purported revocation of large expanses of land, including the Umuomake ancestral land, on grounds of “overriding public interest.”
The claimants argue that the action was arbitrary and deceitful, as it was cloaked under statutory language while blatantly disregarding constitutional safeguards and the procedural requirements under Section 28 of the Land Use Act.
Following the publication, the family said it took immediate steps to verify the authenticity, scope, and legal basis of the alleged revocation, given its grave implications on their proprietary rights. However, the Delta State Government has failed to address their concerns or engage meaningfully, prompting this litigation as a necessary step to protect their constitutional right to property.
