A major property dispute has erupted in Lekki Phase 1, Lagos, involving billionaire industrialist Chief Razaq Okoya, his wife Chief (Mrs.) Shade Okoya, and former senator Domingo Obende.
The conflict centres on a block of sixteen three-bedroom flats located at Plot 96, Ladipo Omotosho Cole Street. The property is the subject of an ongoing legal battle — Suit No: LD/5226GCM/2021 — between Senator Domingo’s firm, Dajo Oil Nigeria Limited, and the Okoyas’ company, RAO Investment Property Company Ltd.
Tenants using the property for commercial purposes allege harassment and intimidation by thugs reportedly acting on behalf of the Okoyas. A video circulating among reporters shows a group of men, described as “Lagos thugs,” threatening tenants and a lawyer at the premises while claiming to be sent by Mrs. Shade Okoya.
Despite previous public complaints, tenants say the intimidation continues. “They boast that they own Nigeria and keep sending thugs and police to disturb us,” a tenant representative said. “We rented this place legally, but now we’re caught in the middle of their fight. Instead of resolving the matter with the senator, they’re making life difficult for us.”
Documents from Oludare Adaramewa & Co., solicitors for Senator Domingo and Dajo Oil, outline the origins of the dispute. According to the firm, Mrs. Memunat Ajoke Olubando, Chief Okoya’s former wife who managed the company before Mrs. Shade Okoya took charge, received an advance payment of $250,000 (about ₦400 million) from Senator Domingo’s company on behalf of RAO Investment Property Company Ltd. and Eleganza Ball Pen Industries Ltd.
The payment was reportedly a loan secured by the Lekki property, with the original Certificate of Occupancy handed over as collateral. However, despite several meetings and discussions, the Okoyas allegedly failed to refund the money or transfer ownership of the property as agreed.
As a result, Senator Domingo’s company has approached the court, seeking to assume control of and sell the property to recover the outstanding debt. The lawyer confirmed that the original Certificate of Occupancy remains in their custody, reinforcing Dajo Oil’s legal claim to the property.
Chief Razaq Okoya is the billionaire founder of the Eleganza Group, one of Nigeria’s oldest manufacturing firms. The dispute has now escalated into a tense standoff, with both parties asserting ownership rights while tenants bear the brunt of the ongoing legal confrontation.
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