Federal High Court, sitting in Lagos, Southwest Nigeria on Friday July 22, 2022, adjourned the case filed against First Bank Holdings Plc and it’s Directors to November 30, 2022, for hearing.
Gatekeepers News reports that the Court had on July 15, 2022 granted an order directing the company and its Directors to revert to the status prevailing before the 10th Annual General Meeting held in June 30, 2022.
The order was granted following a petition filed by an aggrieved shareholder of the company, Olusegun Onagoruwa.
Onagoruwa is seeking to stop the company from implementing all the decisions taken at its 10th Annual General Meeting recently held on June 20, 2022, at Oriental Hotel, Lagos.
First Bank Holdings PLC is the controlling owner of First Bank of Nigeria Plc.
In the order granted on July 15, 2022, Justice Akintayo Aluko directed First Bank Holdings Plc and all the respondents in the case, to maintain the status quo ante bellum prevailing before the AGM was held on June 20, 2022, effectively putting on hold the appointment of Nnamdi Okonkwo as the Group Managing Director and Julius Omodayo-Owotuga, as Non-Executive Director respectively.
The Court further stopped the respondents from raising or issuing shares and from implementing any of the resolutions reached at the 10th AGM.
The respondents in the suit are First Bank Holdings Plc; Ahmed Abdullahi, the Chairman of the Board of Directors; Julius Omodayo-Owotuga, Non-Executive Director; and Nnamdi Okonkwo, Group Managing Director.
Justice Aluko granted the order after hearing arguments from the petitioner counsel, Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa (SAN).
At the court proceedings of July 22, 2022, Professor Gbolahan Elias (SAN) represented all the respondents in the case.
Adegboruwa informed the court that all court papers and the court order have been served on all the respondents and thus he was ready for the hearing of the pending motion on notice for interlocutory injunction.
Professor Elias, therefore, informed the Court that the respondents were served on Monday July 18, 2022, adding that he needs time to go through the papers.
However, Adegboruwa did not object to the application for an adjournment.
Consequently, by consent of counsel the case was adjourned to November 30, 2022.
The effect of the court proceedings of July 22, 2022 is that the order made by the court on July 15, 2022 remains in force until the hearing and final determination of the motion on notice for an order of interlocutory injunction.
According to the petition, Onagoruwa, claims that the affairs of the company are being run illegally and oppressively. Principally.
He is, therefore, contending in this suit that he was not served with statutory notice for the 10th AGM that was held on 20th June, 2022.
Arguing the case on behalf of the Petitioner, Adegboruwa contended that the Petitioner was by law entitled to be served with notice of the AGM and having not been served, there is a case of breach of his constitutional right to fair hearing in the determination of the Petitioner’s civil rights and obligations.
He further argued that the law is settled that once a breach of fair hearing has occurred, any decision taken pursuant to such breach must be set aside by the Court.
According to him, the decisions and resolutions of the 10th AGM, especially in relation to the appointment of Directors, were null and void as shareholders were not given the opportunity to know and approve the new Board of Directors appointed for the company by the Central Bank Governor and that the powers of the CBN Governor to sack or appoint directors for the company did not take away the powers of shareholders to confirm such directors.
