The Court of Appeal in Abuja has rejected a bid by retired Major Hamza Al-Mustapha to obtain more time to challenge a Federal Capital Territory High Court judgment over an Asokoro property dispute.
A three-member panel, in a unanimous decision delivered on Monday, held that Al-Mustapha failed to provide sufficient reasons for the delay in seeking to appeal the judgment.
The appellate court, in a lead judgment read by Justice Okon Abang, also ordered Al-Mustapha to pay N1m in costs to Al-Nuri Properties, the respondent in the case.
The dispute centres on an Asokoro property reportedly sold by Al-Mustapha to Al-Nuri Properties for about N100m.
Al-Mustapha later challenged the transaction, reportedly describing the payment as a loan and offering to refund the money.
Al-Nuri Properties rejected the offer and instituted a suit on March 16, 2020, seeking to establish its claim over the property.
The FCT High Court sitting in Zuba subsequently entered a default judgment in favour of the company on June 16, 2023, after Al-Mustapha’s legal team failed to participate in the proceedings.
Rather than appeal the judgment within the prescribed period, Al-Mustapha returned to the same court on April 15, 2024, seeking to set aside the decision.
The trial court dismissed the application in a judgment delivered on September 24, 2025.
By then, the statutory period for appealing the 2023 judgment had expired.
Al-Mustapha subsequently approached the Court of Appeal, seeking an extension of time to challenge the original judgment.
But the appellate court faulted him for failing to demonstrate sufficient interest in the proceedings at the trial court.
Justice Abang noted that court records showed that Al-Mustapha failed to honour several hearing notices issued during the proceedings.
The court also rejected his explanation that his lawyer had abandoned the case, holding that the excuse was insufficient to justify the delay.
The judge described the conduct as amounting to “doing the right thing at the wrong time.”
On the claim that Al-Mustapha was denied fair hearing, the Court of Appeal held that his right to fair hearing had not been breached, adding that any situation suggesting otherwise was self-inflicted.
The panel consequently dismissed the application for extension of time, describing it as lacking in merit and amounting to an abuse of court process.
Al-Mustapha served as Chief Security Officer to former military Head of State, General Sani Abacha.