Ondo court clears anti-land grabbing task force to probe complaints

By Boye Oyeyemi

The Ondo State High Court sitting in Akure has dismissed a suit seeking to stop the state Anti-Land Grabbing Task Force from investigating complaints over alleged illegal acquisition of land.

The suit, marked HCAK/324/CIV/2026, was filed by Akinsrinola Akinyele, Dorcas Omobomi and David Aladegbaye against the Ondo State Government, the Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, the Anti-Land Grabbing Task Force and others.

The applicants had asked the court to restrain the government and the task force from acting on petitions concerning disputed parcels of land at Bolorunduro/Origere and Ijoka in Akure.

They argued that some of the properties were covered by existing court judgments, while the disputes reportedly involved members of the Akinyele Adebayo family and individuals who alleged that their properties had been unlawfully taken.

The ruling effectively allows the task force to continue examining the complaints and investigating the competing claims over the disputed properties.

Reacting to the ruling, the Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice and Chairman of the task force, Dr. Olukayode Ajulo, SAN, cautioned lawyers against using court processes to obstruct legitimate investigations by government agencies.

Ajulo said litigation remained an important means of protecting citizens’ rights but should not be used to paralyse institutions lawfully established to investigate complaints, adding that a court judgment or pending litigation did not automatically prevent the state from investigating fresh allegations of criminal conduct or unlawful dispossession.

He reaffirmed the commitment of Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa’s administration to protecting property rights, saying the task force would continue to receive petitions, investigate competing claims and take lawful measures against unlawful dispossession while respecting the authority of the courts and the rights of all parties.