An Ikeja High Court on Tuesday struck out a fundamental rights enforcement suit filed by the Incorporated Trustees of Magodo Residents Association against the Attorney-General of the Federation.
Other respondents included the Inspector-General of Police, the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, CSP Abimbola Oyewole, Mr Adebayo Adeyiga, Mr Yusuf Ogundare, and Mr Owokoniran Adeyiga.
Justice Fimisola Azeez struck out the suit due to the applicants’ continuous absence and their failure to respond to processes filed by the sixth respondent.
The sixth respondent, who sought to set aside the service of court papers on the fifth and seventh respondents, filed the application challenging the substituted service.
Before the ruling, counsel for the sixth respondent, Mr Deji Fasusi, informed the court of the applicants’ persistent absence and refusal to respond to filed processes.
Fasusi urged the court to strike out the case for want of diligent prosecution, stressing that fundamental rights actions require prompt and consistent pursuit.
The court upheld his argument and struck out the suit, awarding costs of ₦50,000 against the Incorporated Trustees of Magodo Residents Association.
In a Motion on Notice filed under Order 5 Rule 9 of the Fundamental Rights (Enforcement Procedure) Rules, 2009, the respondent sought to set aside substituted service.
The substituted service, granted on 20 April 2022, involved pasting court documents at No. 1, Mutairu Street, Shangisha, Lagos, the residence of the sixth respondent.
The sixth respondent argued that he and his family were the sole occupants of the property and that the fifth and seventh respondents were unknown to him.
He contended that they were neither relatives nor associates, and that his residence could not reasonably be considered their last known address.
He further maintained that the substituted service was obtained through misrepresentation, as the property was solely his family home with no link to the other respondents.
