Emmanuel Viashima, the owner of London Line Automobile Workshop, has decided to withdraw the N100 million lawsuit he filed against the Benue Government. The lawsuit was based on the violation of his fundamental rights to acquire and own a movable property.
In his suit, Viashima took the State Government and four others to court, seeking the enforcement of his fundamental rights under Order 1 of the Fundamental Rights Enforcement Procedure Rules, 2009.
According to the originating summons, Viashima claimed that his automobile workshop was unlawfully invaded by the Benue Assets Recovery Committee on July 11. During this invasion, 32 vehicles were taken away by the committee.
Viashima strongly asserted that the seized vehicles did not belong to the government and thus demanded that they be released back to him immediately.
Furthermore, Viashima sought an order for general aggravated damages of N100 million to be awarded against the government in his favor.
In response to the summons, Terlumun Tombowua, the Secretary of the Assets Recovery Committee, stated that a search warrant, signed by the Chief Magistrate, had been duly issued to the committee prior to the search being conducted.
Tombowua also pointed out that since the recovery operation, no individual had come forward to claim ownership of the vehicles that were taken.
However, during the court hearing on Monday, Viashima’s counsel, Mr. T. Wombo, informed the court that his client had instructed him to withdraw the case.
Although the defendants’ counsel, P. A Agbese, did not oppose the application for withdrawal, he requested a reimbursement of N200,000 as a cost for his appearance in court on behalf of the defendants.
Consequently, Justice T.A Kume, ruling on the matter, granted the application for withdrawal without imposing any additional costs.
This turn of events marks the end of Viashima’s legal battle against the Benue Government, allowing both parties to move forward.
In conclusion, Emmanuel Viashima’s decision to withdraw the N100 million lawsuit against the Benue Government brings an interesting twist to the case and raises questions about the ownership of the seized vehicles. With this development, it remains to be seen how the matter will be resolved and if Viashima will take any further legal action in the future.
