After a landmark ruling by the Lagos Court of Appeal, Alhaji Agboola Abiola, son of the late M.K.O. Abiola, has regained ownership of a ₦30 billion home on Queens’ Drive in Ikoyi, Lagos, in a significant court triumph.
In a decision issued Thursday, the appellate court reversed a 2013 Federal High Court ruling that had permitted Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank) to foreclose on the property. The bank’s claim to the 44-room home, which the Court of Appeal characterized as the object of a “illegal foreclosure,” was at the heart of the case RCN Networks Ltd v. GTBank PLC (CA/L/888/2014).
A court finds errors in a mortgage document.
The Court of Appeal’s three-member panel discovered serious errors in the mortgage document that GTBank used as justification for taking possession of the home. The claimed mortgagor, Alhaji Abiola, never signed the mortgage, the court said, and it had “handwritten alterations not present on other pages.”
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The ruling stated that these differences weakened the foreclosure’s legal foundation and provided compelling evidence for fabrication accusations. “So deficient that it was incapable of conferring on the said bank any legal rights to foreclose on the property,” the court found in the mortgage.
Repercussions for Nigerian Mortgage and Foreclosure Cases
According to legal experts, the ruling establishes a solid precedent about how crucial it is to confirm the integrity and legitimacy of mortgage documents in foreclosure cases. The case also demonstrates how vigilant the Nigerian judiciary is becoming in defending property rights and stopping purported financial institution abuses.
Alhaji Agboola Abiola’s Implications
The decision gives Abiola’s son back possession of the opulent Ikoyi mansion, which is thought to be valued more than ₦30 billion. Located on one of Lagos’ most desirable addresses, the mansion was the focus of the lengthy court dispute for almost ten years.
