Court rejects Al-Mustapha’s bid to appeal Asokoro property case

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The Court of Appeal in Abuja has dismissed a request by Major Hamza Al-Mustapha (retd) for an extension of time to appeal a judgment of the Federal Capital Territory High Court over a property in Asokoro, Abuja.

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The three-member panel, in a unanimous decision delivered on Monday, held that Al-Mustapha failed to provide sufficient reasons to warrant granting the application.

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In the lead judgment read by Justice Okon Abang, the court also ordered Al-Mustapha to pay N1m in costs to Al-Nuri Properties, the sole respondent in the appeal.

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The dispute arose from a landed property in Asokoro which Al-Mustapha reportedly sold to Al-Nuri Properties for about N100m but later sought to reclaim after the value of the property appreciated.

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Al-Mustapha subsequently described the transaction as a loan, claiming that he intended to refund the money paid for the property.

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However, the property company rejected the offer, prompting it to institute a suit on March 16, 2020, seeking to establish its claim over the property.

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The High Court of the FCT sitting in Zuba subsequently entered a default judgment in favour of the property company on June 16, 2023, after Al-Mustapha’s legal team failed to participate in the proceedings.

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Rather than appeal the judgment within the stipulated period, Al-Mustapha returned to the same High Court on April 15, 2024, seeking to set aside the earlier decision.

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The trial court, however, dismissed his application in a judgment delivered on September 24, 2025. By then, the time prescribed for appealing the June 16, 2023 judgment had already elapsed. The deadline for appealing the judgment was September 15, 2024.

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Dissatisfied, Al-Mustapha approached the Court of Appeal seeking an extension of time to challenge the 2023 judgment. But the appellate court faulted him for failing to demonstrate sufficient interest in the proceedings at the trial court.

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Justice Abang noted that the records showed that Al-Mustapha failed to honour several hearing notices issued in the course of the proceedings. The court rejected his explanation that his legal counsel had abandoned the case, holding that the excuse was not sufficient to justify the delay.

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Justice Abang described the appellant’s conduct as amounting to “doing the right thing at the wrong time.”

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The court held that Al-Mustapha ought to have provided a convincing explanation for his failure to appeal the June 2023 judgment within the prescribed period. The panel further held that his failure to attend proceedings at the trial court raised doubts about whether he would participate in the proceedings if granted an extension of time.

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On the allegation of denial of fair hearing, the appellate court held that Al-Mustapha’s right to fair hearing had not been violated, adding that any situation resembling such a breach was self-inflicted.

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Justice Abang held that where an applicant failed to provide a reasonable excuse for his conduct, he was not entitled to the indulgence of the court.

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The Court of Appeal consequently dismissed the application for extension of time, describing it as lacking in merit and amounting to an abuse of court process.

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Al-Mustapha was the former Chief Security Officer to the late military dictator, General Sani Abacha.

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