Judgement
PARTIES
1. The Plaintiff is a Community citizen of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The Defendant
is the Federal Republic of Nigeria member state of the Community.
2. Date of Originating Application: 22 July, 2016
3. This is the judgement of the Court pursuant to the Plaintiff’s claim is for violation of
his fundamental human, civil, social and economic rights and that of his family. The
Parties were both heard in open Court and their arguments were supported by
evidence.
4. This judgement is delivered 11th December, 2018.
PLAINTIFF CLAIMS FOR:
5. A DECLARATION that the forceful acquisition of the Plaintiffs ancestral/traditional
family land, estate and heirloom of the Osuan Family of Benin Kingdom, by the
Defendant’s predecessor namely the British Colonial Government as their European
Reservation Area now known as Government Reservation Area (GRA) IN Benin City,
Edo State and by successive Federal and State Government of the Federal Republic of
Nigeria for the last 100 years both in colonial and post-colonial era without any form
of compensation whatsoever is unlawful. The same is crass violation and breach of the
Fundamental Human Rights of the Osuan family to the centuries long ownership of
their landed property as entrenched in article 14c of the African Charter on Human and
People’s rights (ACHPR); article 26 of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of
Indigenous Peoples, article 17 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR);
article 1 of the United Nations’ International covenant on Civil and Political Rights
(ICCPR) and article 1 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural
Rights (ICESCR).
6. AN ORDER mandating the Defendants namely the Defendant namely the Federal
Republic of Nigeria and Edo State Government to immediately pay remedial damages
of Three Billion US Dollars ($3,000,000,000) to the Plaintiff namely Chief Ambrose
Ouan and the Osuan family of Benin Kingdom. As an adequate compensation, for the
continued forceful acquisition and use of the Osuan Family land, over the last 100 years
till date, without any form of payment or benefit to the Osuan Family for their land of
well over four square kilometers (4.0km2) or four hundred hectares of (400ha), of fully
developed prime properties by the defendants and their colonial predecessor as
2