Billionaire’s Estate Sparks Fresh Legal Storm

The glittering legacy of the late billionaire industrialist and Parakoyi of Ibadan, Chief Olabode Akindele, has become the centre of a bruising family and legal battle, as competing claims over his vast estate continue to unfold before the Lagos State High Court.

Six years after the respected businessman passed away at the age of 88, the dispute surrounding his final wishes has escalated into a high-stakes probate contest, pitting members of the Akindele family and associates against one another over the validity and interpretation of a Will said to govern the distribution of his considerable fortune.

At the heart of the matter is Oladipo Alade Akindele, who identifies himself as the late industrialist’s seventh biological child and first son. In Suit No. LD/10/2020 before Justice Tanimola Ajorin-Ajose of Lagos High Court, he is challenging the validity of the Will and asking the court to halt its administration.

His case raises several contentious questions, including the alleged alteration of the Will’s execution date, the authenticity of signatures associated with the alteration, testamentary capacity and the absence of a Family Protocol referenced in the document. According to the claimant, the Will repeatedly refers to a Deed of Declaration and Family Protocol as Schedule Two, yet the document was allegedly absent from the Will lodged at the Probate Registry.

The defendants have offered a different account. They acknowledge the existence of the document, describing it as the “Sir (Chief) Olabode Oladimeji Akindele Family Constitution,” and maintain that it was executed in 2018 by the deceased and several members of his family. They argue that the document had been adequately incorporated into the Will and that its physical attachment was not fatal to the testament.

Beyond the legal intricacies, the proceedings have also laid bare deep-seated family tensions. The claimant alleges that he was excluded from aspects of the funeral arrangements and was not invited to the reading of the Will in August 2020.

The defendants dispute any deliberate attempt to ostracise him, asserting that the deceased had during his lifetime disowned him and that his exclusion from certain family activities reflected his father’s wishes.

Chief Akindele’s business empire, built over decades, stretched across maritime services, fishing, finance, real estate and international investments, with interests linked to companies including Fairgate Group Limited, Fairgate Estates Limited, Fairgate Investments Limited and Madandola Group.

The claimant is also seeking an account of the estate’s assets, income and transactions since the businessman’s death, as well as temporary administration of the estate pending the determination of the suit.

For now, however, the competing narratives remain allegations and denials awaiting judicial determination.