MACHINE UMUDJE & ANOR V. SHELL -BP PETROLEUM DEVELOPMENT COMPANY OF NIGERIA LIMITED

C. IDIGBE, JSC (Delivering the Leading Judgment): This is an appeal from the judgment of Ogbobine J., in the High Court of Midwestern State sitting at Ughelli in a rather inartistic, if not badly worded claim against Shell-BP Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria, the appellants, by the respondents (members of the Enenurhie - EVWRENI - Community) which reads:-

"The plaintiffs' claim against the defendants as follows: for

(a) the sum of 50,000 pound being fair and reasonable compensation due payable by the defendants to the plaintiffs for the damage done by the defendants, by and through their agents to plaintiffs farm land, fishing ponds, fishing lakes on plaintiffs' land, known as and called Oto Edefema and IWHREMO BUSH in that the defendants by themselves their servants and or their agents wrongfully and partially blocked the Utefe stream and the original channel or waterway hatched green in the survey plan No. AR 1391, now replaced by the Access Road sometimes in 1969/70 and als…