Jarret Tenebe, the acting chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has been sued by the Edo State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the unlawful and violent invasion, eviction, and takeover of the party’s secretariat on Airport Road in Benin City.
According to reports, the party revealed this information in a summons writ that was made available to reporters in Benin City on Wednesday.
The party asked the court for a permanent injunction prohibiting Jarret Tenebe and his agents from trespassing, conducting business, or interfering with their peaceful occupation of the secretariat at No. 49, Airport Road, Benin City, Edo State, in a writ of summons from the chambers of A.O. Edeko and Co.
Additionally, the state’s opposition party asked the court to mandate that Tenebe reimburse it for losses totaling more than N900 million.
More than N300 million was cited as extraordinary damages for its office equipment, which included laptops, computers, generators, and other devices.
According to the summons, during the unlawful invasion and takeover, the Acting APC State chairman and his goons allegedly carried away and destroyed the properties.
Other demands of the party are, “a declaration that the Claimant is the rightful occupant of the premises known as No. 49, Airport Road, Benin City, Edo State, having leased the same from MR ENOMA AGBONTAEN, the Landlord, whose said lease is still subsisting.”
“A declaration that the violent eviction of the Claimant and its staff from the premises known as No. 49, Airport Road, Benin City, Edo State, constitutes an act of trespass in law.”
“A declaration that by forcefully evicting the Claimant from its rented premises at No. 49, Airport Road, Benin City, on the 16th of January 2025, the Defendant violated the Claimant’s rights to a quiet enjoyment of its rented property and thereby caused the Claimant general damages assessed at N500,000,000.00k (Five Hundred Million Naira).”
“An Order for the payment of the sum of N322,765,500.00k as special damages being the value of the Claimant’s office equipment, which includes computers, generators, laptops, etc, that the Defendant and the thugs carted away and destroyed.”
“Cost of emergency alternative office at Etano Hotel G.R.A., Benin City, N3,000,000.00 (three million naira) per day from 16th January to 13/2/2025 = N3,000,000.00 x 30 days N90,000,000.00 (Ninety million naira) and at N5,000,000.00 (Five Million Naira) from 13/2/2025 till judgment”, it said.
Nonetheless, it asked the court to grant and reinstate the claimant’s ownership and occupancy rights over its property, located at 49 Airport Road in Benin City, Edo State.
“An Order of perpetual injunction restraining the Defendant, his agents, servants privies, assigns, any persons howsoever described acting on his behalf or instruction from further trespassing on or operating any manner of business or further disturbing the Claimant’s peaceful occupation of that premises known as No. 49, Airport Road, Benin City, Edo State”, the writ of summons added.
Jarret Tenebe, the APC’s State Acting Chairman, is accused of breaking into the secretariat on January 16, 2025, and snatching it away from the PDP.
