The Court of Appeal, Lagos Division on Tuesday reserved judgement in the appeal filed by former Managing Director of Intercontinental Bank Plc, Dr. Erastus Akingbola challenging revocation of the bank’s license by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
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After listening to parties in the matter, the 3-member panel led by Justice Mohammed Lawal Garuba reserved its judgement.
Akingbola through his lawyer, Onyebuchi Aniakor had asked the appellate court to set aside the earlier ruling of a Federal High Court, Lagos, which dismissed his suit, challenging the planned sale of Intercontinental Bank to Access Bank.
Justice Okechuwku Okeke of the Federal High Court, Lagos, had dismissed a suit by Akingbola and a former executive director of Intercontinental Bank, Mr. Bayo Dada, challenging a Memorandum of Understanding, MoU, for business combination, recently signed by their former bank and Access Bank.
Dissatisfied, Akingbola and Dada appealed and insisted that CBN was wrong to have masterminded the signing of the said MoU without recourse to them as shareholders and former directors of Intercontinental Bank.
Arguing the appeal on Tuesday, Aniakor urged the appellate court to allow the appeal and set aside the judgement of the lower court.
The appellants in their amended Notice of Appeal contended that the lower court erred in law when it adjudged the suit as an abuse of court process, merely on an assertion contained in the preliminary objections of the defendants, rather than the verified averments in the petition.
The appellants insisted that Justice Okeke made fundamental error in concluding that the letter in which Dada was removed was not tendered, adding that the action occasioned substantial prejudice to them.
He urged the court to hold that given the provision of section 36 of the 1999 constitution, the governor of Central Bank of Nigeria or any other body cannot validly direct the appellants to cease to serve as directors of Intercontinental bank without given them hearing on the matter.
The appellants urged the court to order the respondents jointly and severally render account of their dealings in the affairs of the Bank.
They also urged the court to nullify all steps, decisions taken by the respondents in the affairs of the Bank from August 14, 2009 till date.
Justice Okeke had held that the suit was an abuse of court process, as there was a similar suit by other interested parties on the same subject matter.
The lower court also held that the suit was status barred, as the suit was challenging an action carried out as far back as August 14, 2009, when Sanusi removed some bank chiefs.
