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Sanusi, CBN oppose Intercontinental Bank shareholders’ suit

By on May 16, 2014

The Central Bank of Nigeria and its suspended governor, Mallam Lamido Sanusi, have asked a Federal High Court in Abuja to dismiss a suit challenging the sale of the defunct Intercontinental Bank Plc.

Some shareholders of Intercontinental Bank had filed the suit against the CBN and Sanusi, seeking N10bn as special and general damages for alleged breaches and fraudulent acts, which they said culminated in the wrongful takeover of the bank by Access Bank Plc.

The plaintiffs also want the court to order the CBN to immediately recover the sum of N25.1bn together with interest still being owed by the erstwhile Managing Director of Access Bank, Mr. Aig-Aigboje Imokhuede; the incumbent, Mr. Herbert Wigwe, and Senator Bukola Saraki.

The plaintiffs are Abdullahi Sani, Adaeze Onwuegbusi and Chijioke Ezeipke.

The Securities and Exchange Commission was joined in the suit as the third defendant.

The CBN and Sanusi stated in their separate notices of preliminary objection to the suit that the matter was already statute barred as the time permissible to institute a suit challenging the acts of public officers had expired in that specific instance.

They also urged the court, presided over by Justice Ahmed Mohammed, to dismiss the suit on the grounds that it lacked the jurisdiction to entertain the suit considering the provisions of Section 53(1) of the Banks and Other Financial Institutions Act, and section 52(1) of the Central Bank Act, 2007.

They maintained that the allegation that they perpetrated fraud in the sale of Intercontinental Bank was not backed by any evidence.

Urging the court to dismiss the suit, the defendants said that they complied with all relevant laws in the transactions.

In an affidavit deposed to by one Francess Monago, a counsel in the chambers of Kola Awodein (SAN), the defendants said that while exercising their statutory duties, they examined the books of Intercontinental Bank and found that the bank was in a grave financial situation.

They said the grave financial situation was occasioned by capital inadequacy, grossly poor liquidity ratio and corporate governance problems.

The affidavit read in part, “In order to salvage the bank and protect the interests of the bank’s depositors and creditors, the 1st defendant (Sanusi) made an executive order removing the then managing director and the executive directors of the bank and appointed a new managing director and the executive directors to oversee the affairs of the bank.”

During Wednesday’s proceedings, the plaintiffs’ lawyer, Chris Uche (SAN), told the court that he was just served with copies of the notices of preliminary objection filed by Sanusi and the CBN few minutes before proceedings commenced.

He also informed the court that he had received separate applications for joinder by some individuals, who he accused of “masquerading for Access Bank.”

Uche sought for time to enable him to respond to the pending applications. All parties agreed with his application for adjournment.

Justice Mohammed adjourned the matter till July 16 for a possible hearing of the applications.

Uche had in the previous proceedings, prayed the court for leave to serve Sanusi through a substituted means on the grounds that his present place of abode after his suspension was not known.

 

 

[Punch]