Mohamed Ghazi R. Faiad & Another v Attorney-General and Minister of Justice & Another (SC 6 of 2009) [2010] SLSC 15 (19 October 2010)

sn ole a ee SC. 6/2009 aX IN THE SUPRE } I REME Cour or SIERRA LEONE IN THE MATTER OF THE cons: TT’ acT NO. 6 OF 1991, section 212 ar iaetivt LEONE, 1991 ’ ya) IN THE MATTER OF ACTION Pi ON PART AVE QUUGTION PURSUANT To THE SUPREM: 12 09.96 oF STATUTORY moTRORERS Tan es BET WLEN: \ MOHAMED GHA‘ F ZI R. FALAD + 1° PLAINTIFF DUNJA FAIAD ~ 2% pL (SUING BY THEIR ATTORNEY Laiel BALA S. AMARAKSEKARAN) NO. 6 SMART FARM OFF WILKINSON ROAD FREETOWN | AND 4 ATTORNEY-GENERAL - 187 DEFENDANT { & MINISTER OF JUSTICE GUMA BUILDING LAMINA SANKOH STREET FREETOWN THE BANK OF SIERRA LEONE - 2%? DEFENDANT SIAKA STEVENS STREET FREETOWN * CORam: H - JS. THE HON. MRS. JUSTICE S- BASH-TAQI , : c. - S.C, THE HON. MRS. JUSTICE V-A-D- WRIGHT STICE M.E.T. THOMPSON - JSC. THE HON. MR. JU! ee gebcAJANNEH JSC. THE HON. MR. JUSTICE G™ 5 - oA USTICE E-E- ROBERT THE HON. MR. JI

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COUNSEL: Qq 2

Lore ae ESQ. AND OSMAN JALLOH ESQ. FOR THE

OSMAN KANU FOR THE 15T DEFENANT

PATRICK MAMBERT ERO THE 2% DEFENDANT

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JUDGEMENT DELIVERED on THE |] “payor (oc ke Jes 2010 S EMEGA-JANNEH - J.S.C.

The facts are brief and the basic facts are undisputed. By a series of conveyances commencing with the conveyance (Exhibit B) dated the 29% April 1961 between the representatives of Toke village on the Sierra Leone Peninsular Circular Road of the one part and Cornelius Augustine Harding of 64 Wellington Street, Freetown, of the other part the suit land was finally conveyed (Exhibit A) in 1997 to the Plaintiffs, Ghazi Faiad and Mrs. Dunia Faiad by Shakib Najib Khalil Basma by his Attorney Jamiel Kamel Nimer Wanza and others. Adjacent to the suit land is property owned by the 2 Defendant who also purchased same from Mr. Cornelius Harding. By a letter dated the 12 January 2007 (Exhibit L), the 2 Defendant was informed of the Minister of lands and Country Planning's approval of the allocation of the suit land, described as state land, to the 2! Defendant. The Plaintiffs and their predecessors in title have been in possession of the suit land for several years and in the mid 1980s up to 1998 had developed the suit land, built chalets and operated the premises as a hotel under the names of AFRICANA TOKE VILLAGE, and TOKE VILLAS HOTEL.

The 2nd Defendants have now embarked upon fencing of the suit land along its Perimeter except the dividing line separating the suit land from the land owned by the ond Defendant and thus incorporating the suit land and the other land Within one fenced area. The Plaintiffs were alarmed by this development and alter a serics of correspondence, the Plaintiffs commenced action in the High _ ee ee

wa Ss ¥ court. This was subsequently abandoned and the Plaintiffs has this action | ander this Court's original jurisdiction claiming the following A. Adeclaration that the Plaintiffs are the fee simple owners free from } all incumbrances of all that piece of or parcel of land situate lying and being at the Off Peninsula Circular Road, Toxeh village Freetown, in the Western Area of the Republic of Sierra Leone aS : shown on the survey plan with L.S. no: 722/96 by virtue of & conveyance dated 28" February 1997 and made between Shakib N.K, Basma, Rached R. Faiad & M. Ghazi R. Faiad as vendors of the one part and Mohamed Ghazi Faiad & Dunia Faiad, the Plaintiffs herein, as purchasers of the other part covering an area of approximately 2.4744 acre and Registered as no. 348 at page 74 in volume 618 in the Record Book of Conveyances kept in the Office of the Registrar-General, Freetown, save for any restrictions referred to in the conveyance aforesaid. B. That the 2" Defendant, installed by the Minister of lands, Housing and the Environment and the Director of Surveys and lands of the Republic of Sierra Leone on the said piece or parcel of land, be ordered by this Honourable Court to vacate the said land and deliver up possession to the Plaintiffs. C. That the Honourable Court do award the Plaintiffs damages to be paid by the 2 Defendant for the contravention of the Plaintiffs | rights provided for in section 21 of the Constitution, D. That the Honourable Court grants a perpetual injunction restraining the Defendants, jointly and severally, by themselves their servants, agents, privies or howsoever of otherwise from selling, leasing, mortgaging, entering, remaining parting, with possession and/or in any way whatsoever from disposing or interfering with said piece or parcel of land or any part thereof. Hl

£. Any further or other relief that this Honourable Court on ae fit and just | F. That the costs of and/or incidental to this application be borne PY | the 24 Defendant ‘the Plaintiffs filed a Statement of Case. The 2% Defendant filed statement of | case. The 1% Defendant failed to file a Statement of Case and at the hearing failed to offer any evidence or argument. By virtue of rule 92(1) of the Supreme Court Rules, 1982, and the conduct of the 1 Defendant, I conclude that the 1® Defendant clearly did not wish and had not contested the case On the other hand the 2% Defendant vigorously contested the case and, therefore, it would be prudent in the circumstances of the case, to deal with the case as @ whole. ‘The defence of the 2n¢ Defendant primarily rested on two pillars: (1) that the suit land was at all times state land and (2) that the Plaintiffs and some of their predecessors were not Sierra Leoneans, Let me firstly deal quickly with the first pillar as I recognize the thrust and emphasis of the 2! Defendant is on the second pillar with its foundation being rested on statutes. Mr. P. Lambert, of counsel, for the 24 Defendant, quoted extensively the judgement of the Supreme Court dated the 16 March 2007 delivered by Justice Renner-Thomas, Chief Justice - (as he then was) in the matter between Sorie Tarawalli and Sorie Koroma (as administrator of the estate of Sorie Mansaray) S.C. Civ. App No- 7/2004 (unreported) at pages 7 and 8 before he submitted that the primary vendors (the villagers of Toke by their representatives) had no title in and © the land which they purported to convey (Exhibit B to the affidavit of Bala , Amara Sckaran dated the 11% May 2009) to Cornelius Augustine Harding {subsequently a Justice of the Supreme Court) and further submitted that the concept of “Community land” is not recognized by law in the Western Area and therefore no titled passed The quotation is extensive but duc to its significance I repeat it in full hereunder:

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