Mr. Ndibe Obi, the younger brother of Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate Peter Obi, has taken a legal step after a property owned by his company, Next Foods Ltd, was demolished in Ikeja, Lagos.
According to the company’s lawyer, Chief Emeka Okpoko (SAN), they have already started legal actions. He said the company is asking the court to allow them to be part of the case officially. They also want to change the case documents to include the company’s name and ask the court to cancel the earlier judgment.
He explained that they have also applied for a court order to stop any more demolition until the case is heard fully. Another request is to change the format of the case so both sides can explain their positions, and the court can make a proper decision.
Okpoko said the property was bought in 2011 and got approval from the Lagos State governor in 2013. There had been no problem with the land until the recent incident.
He further explained that the land belonged to Next Foods Ltd, where Peter Obi’s brother is the major investor. The land records go back to when the Western Nigeria land registry was in Ibadan. The previous owner had died without a will, and the land was later sold legally.
When the demolition happened, the lawyer said he was informed that people showed up claiming to be executing a court order. The security man at the gate didn’t see any papers at first. Later, he found a document mentioning a debt of N5,700 and an order to remove goods and personal items—not to demolish a building.
Okpoko traced the case back to a lawsuit filed by a woman named Deborah Olonwulogbo. She had filed a court request stating that some squatters had taken over her property while she was away caring for her sick husband. The request was to remove those people—not to claim ownership of the land.
He said it appears the court was misled into thinking the company had been informed about the case. But he believes the notice may have been placed in a hidden spot and quickly removed, so the company never saw it.
Although the judgment was made in 2024, the demolition only happened in June 2025, even though court orders like that should be carried out within six months.
Next Foods Ltd says they were never told about the case and didn’t know it was happening. They found out only when the demolition took place. Now, they have gone to court with documents proving they are the real owners of the property.
The lawyer said the woman involved showed a Lagos State Certificate of Occupancy (C of O) dated 2025 and another one from the Federal Ministry of Works from 2021. But the company already had its own C of O from 2011 and got the governor’s approval in 2013.
He questioned whether a federal C of O could apply to a property in Ikeja GRA. He also doubted if any new approvals are even possible in that area since it’s fully built up. He believes a C of O can’t fix a transaction that was illegal from the start.
Finally, he stated that Next Foods Ltd has always paid its dues and submitted yearly reports to the Lagos State government. They have proof of this and plan to include it in their case.
