Kaduna Governor restores Abacha family lands taken by El-Rufai
Kaduna State Governor, Uba Sani, has returned two parcels of land in Kaduna city to the family of the late General Sani Abacha, nearly two years after they were revoked and seized by former Governor Nasir El-Rufai.
The reinstated properties include a 2,284-square-meter plot at No. 9 Abakpa GRA, covered by Kaduna State Certificate of Occupancy No. 30575, and a 3,705-square-meter plot at No. 1 Degel Road, Ungwan Rimi GRA, covered by Certificate of Occupancy No. 11458.
Reuben Atabo (SAN), the legal representative of the Abacha family, confirmed to news outlets that the Right of Occupancy (RO) for these properties was revoked in 2022 under El-Rufai’s administration.
The Kaduna State government had placed a public notice on April 28, 2022, informing that the governor had revoked titles to several plots of land in the metropolis for violations of the terms and conditions of their Right of Occupancy, as granted under the Land Use Act of 1978. General Sani Abacha’s name appeared as number 34 on the list of revoked land titles.
In response, Atabo (SAN) filed legal actions in the Kaduna State High Court in 2021 and 2022, contesting the embarrassment caused to the Abacha family by the publication and other related claims.
Governor Sani, however, decided to reinstate the titles. In two letters dated December 10, 2024, through Mustapha Haruna, the Deed Registrar on behalf of the Director General of the Kaduna Geographic Information Service (KADGIS), the governor reinstated the land titles to the Abacha family. The letters instructed the titleholders to pay any outstanding ground rent fees.
The first letter, regarding the land at No. 9 Abakpa GRA, read: “I am directed to inform you that His Excellency, the Governor of Kaduna State, has in the powers conferred on him under the Land Use Act of 1978, reinstated the aforementioned title… subject to the condition of settling all outstanding fees and charges.”
The second letter, concerning the land along Degel Road, Ungwan Rimi GRA, stated: “I am directed to inform you that His Excellency, the Governor of Kaduna State, has reinstated your rights and interest over the subject property… subject to the strict condition of settling all outstanding fees and charges.”
Proofreading by Uchechi Ojo, Sub-editor at NeptunePrime.
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