Court warns DSS, Bauchi Ministry of lands to respect order on land dispute

From Ahmad Muhammad, Bauchi

A Bauchi State High Court has issued a stern warning to the Department of State Services (DSS) and the State Ministry of Lands and Survey, ordering them to strictly comply with a restraining order granted over a land dispute in Firo village, Ganjuwa Local Government Area.
The presiding judge, Justice Aliyu Bin Idris of High Court 12, gave the warning on Thursday during proceedings in suit No. BA/251/2026.
The suit was filed by the landowners—Hajiya Fatima Abdullahi, Ishaq Mohammed Kobi, and Murtala Isma’il—against the Bauchi State Ministry of Lands and Survey, the Attorney General of Bauchi State, and the State Security Service (DSS), Bauchi State Command.
Justice Aliyu warned defense counsel against any actions that would flout the court’s restraining order on the disputed land, which is situated along the Gubi Dam area in Firo village, pending the hearing and determination of the case.
He subsequently directed the counsel for the Ministry of Lands to serve the DSS with their filed processes and adjourned the suit to July 16, 2026, for the hearing of the motion on notice.
Allegations of Disobedience to Court Orders
Speaking to journalists after the court session, counsel to the claimants, Barrister Abdullatif Goni Isa, explained that his clients approached the court to protect their lawful ownership and possession of the property.
Barrister Isa alleged that DSS operatives, in collaboration with officials from the Ministry of Lands and Survey, recently entered the farmland without prior notice, consultation, or lawful authority to assess and mark it for acquisition.
“We approached the court and successfully obtained an interim injunction restraining the defendants from interfering with the claimants’ possession of the land,” Isa said. “The court had to reiterate the need for the DSS and Ministry officials to strictly comply with its orders following allegations that activities were still ongoing on the land despite the subsisting court injunction.”
The defense lawyer added that while the Ministry of Lands has filed and served its response to the suit on the claimants, the DSS has yet to file any response. The adjournment, he noted, became necessary because the Ministry had not completed the service of its processes on the DSS.
Landowner Details History of Dispute
Also speaking on the matter, one of the claimants, Hajiya Fatima Abdullahi, stated that they acquired lawful titles to the land through legitimate purchases and allocations granted by the Ganjuwa Local Government Authority. She noted that they had exercised uninterrupted ownership, including farming and plotting the land for sale, until the current dispute.
Fatima recounted that in 2020, the Ministry of Lands acquired portions of land from several individuals in the area to facilitate the establishment of an SSS training school. By 2024, the security agency expressed interest in purchasing additional plots from her. However, after she submitted a formal letter indicating her willingness to sell, the agency allegedly failed to respond, prompting her to continue marketing the plots to other buyers.
She alleged that the DSS later moved onto the land to install beacons and demarcate it in an attempt to unlawfully annex the property. Furthermore, Fatima claimed that agents of the security outfit issued threats, warning that anyone who entered or worked on the land would be shot.
Lamenting that a portion of the disputed land belongs to orphans under her care, she appealed to the court to ensure justice and fairness prevail.