The Case
The dispute began when Amie Fofana, daughter of the late Fatoumatta M. Sise, filed a Writ of Summons in April 2023. She sought to overturn the Ministry’s re-entry of her mother’s plot, registered under Lease SR No. K309/2009, and to restrain Yunus Sillah from occupying or developing the land.
Fofana argued that her mother had been granted a 99-year lease in 1992 to build a school, fenced the property, and constructed classrooms before relocating to the United States. Despite her mother’s death in 2014, Fofana and her siblings continued paying rent and resumed development work in 2016.
The Ministry of Lands denied her claims, alleging rent default and lack of development permits. Yunus Sillah also asserted ownership, insisting that Fofana’s family had failed to meet lease conditions.
The Judgment
Justice Aryee, after reviewing the evidence, ruled in favour of Fofana. She noted that the plaintiff had proven her case “on the preponderance of probabilities” and that the Ministry’s re-entry was unlawful.
“The 3rd defendant saw all the red flags but decided to go ahead and build on the land even when restrained by the Court,” Justice Aryee said, criticising Yunus Sillah for flouting court orders by continuing construction.
The Court declared the lease to Fatoumatta M. Sise valid and subsisting, set aside the Ministry’s allocation to Yunus English School, and ordered Sillah to vacate the land within two months.
Orders of the Court
Justice Aryee issued a perpetual injunction effective from 23 August 2026, restraining the defendants from “entering into, trespassing, selling, disposing, alienating or otherwise interfering” with the land.
“This Court has no sympathy for the 3rd defendant because he was put on notice and warned off the land even before he dug the tiniest hole,” she stated, adding that any loss sustained by Sillah could not be traced to the plaintiff.
