By Debo Oduntan

The saying that justice delayed is justice denied seems to have been proved wrong this time. Rather, all we can say is that, though the wheel of justice grinds slowly, it will surely vindicate the just. No matter how long the truth is hidden, it must surely come to light with time.

Definitely, Dr. Wale Babalakin’s Resort International Limited will attest to this truism. Just recently, an Arbitration Tribunal found fault against the Federal Government for failing in its obligations to Babalakin’s company over the controversial stoppage of the Federal Secretariat Complex redevelopment project.

For not meeting its obligations, the Federal Government was ordered to pay a total of N54 billion in damages to Babalakin’s Resort International Ltd. This includes interest calculated at 17.26 percent commencing September 2008. In its claim at Arbitration, Resort International Ltd demanded N88 billion from the Federal Government for general and aggravated damages arising from the breach of a clause of the Development Lease Agreement (DLA).

The said DLA granted Resort a 99 years’ lease to develop the disused Federal Secretariat Complex, Ikoyi, Lagos, into 480 luxury apartments. If things had gone according to plan, the Federal Secretariat premises would have been populated by Nigerians living the 21st century life in ultra-modern surroundings by now.
But it was not to be. Work was apace on the complex when it all came to an abrupt end in 2007, no thanks to scores of armed mobile police and so-called ‘Area Boys’ who invaded the complex on the orders of the Lagos State Government, and brought redevelopment activities to a halt.

The stoppage was the proverbial last straw that broke the camel’s back, no thanks to a state government that would stop at nothing to frustrate the project, it seemed. Definitely, no one would deny that such untoward action exposed Babalakin to ridicule and very negative press, not only impugning his integrity but also discrediting his standing before several banks and organisations that had business and associated dealings with him.

Such brazen and barefaced action by LASG, was not unconnected with earlier moves by the state government to acquire the Secretariat Complex. When that failed, it resorted to rough tactics and political blackmail.
The Lagos monarch, Oba Rilwan Akiolu, accused the then Olusegun Obasanjo administration of handing over the complex to so-called powerful interests rather than to the state government, an allegation vehemently debunked by Resort International Ltd at the time.

In an all-out bid to frustrate the project, the Lagos State Government had come up with a plethora of unreasonable demands that included: requirement that Resort International Ltd, as leaseholder, obtain a fresh Certificate of Ownership (C of O) from Lagos State, not minding the documents earlier issued by the Federal Government in this regard.

Also, the company was required to apply for the consent of the state governor on property leased to them; even as it was ordered to apply for a change of use as well as a development permit from the government.
According to a Resort executive, “The state government demanded from 15 to 50 percent of the cost of properties from buyer as an additional condition before work can commence.” Despite all entreaties, the Lagos State Government refused to see reason, even as it refused to grant the “No-Objection Approval “required under Clause 1V of the DLA. It was the inability of the Federal Government to secure the “No-Objection Approval” that ruined the project.

The project stalled despite the huge sums of money already sunk into the redevelopment by Resort International Ltd. To cap it all, LASG promulgated a new law, almost as an afterthought, which retroactively finished off the Federal Secretariat project once and for all.

Given the level of impunity involved on the part of the Lagos State government, it is hardly surprising that the Arbitration panel decided in favour of Babalakin’s company on all three issues for determination. The Tribunal awarded damages, plus interest at 17.26%, totaling N54 billion as at January 2016, and counting. The Tribunal further affirmed Resort International Ltd’s title to the Federal Secretariat property at Ikoyi.
Clearly, Babalakin and his company have won an important victory in this long running saga. This ruling is a befitting denouement to the long struggles for justice. It goes a long way to set the record straight as to the rights and the wrongs of the case. People have a right to know what has deprived the city of Lagos, Nigeria’s commercial hub, of a much needed regenerative project that would have improved the area while giving a boost to the economy.

It is hoped that sanity will reign now, and that a way forward can be found on the Federal Secretariat Complex, for the larger good of society. We cannot keep asking investors to take a chance on our economy while we make a habit of pulling the rug from under their feet. Investor confidence is crucial to the growth sorely needed in our economy.

For the collective good, we implore all parties concerned to sheathe their swords and abide by the Tribunal’s ruling on the Federal Secretariat. This is on the understanding that, since they subjected themselves to the civilised norms of Arbitral adjudication, it is pertinent they abide by the outcome.

http://dailytimes.com.ng/justice-vindicated-babalakin/