N9.2bn debt: Court places Emeka Offor’s 22 bank accounts on watch list
Suleiman Bello
The Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) have been given a positive order of an Abuja Federal High Court directing authorities of 22 commercial banks in the country to place on the watch-list all accounts maintained with them by Emeka Offor.
The trial judge, Justice Gabriel Kolawole, issued the order yesterday at the instance of Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) after rejecting its invitation to issue an interim order freezing all the accounts and injunction against eight named companies belonging to Emeka Offor.
According to the judge, the assets of Offor’s companies were not being moved out of the country and that to grant mareva injunction exparte without concrete evidence would make the court appear as a partial arbiter.
Ruling on the exparte application brought by NDIC to freeze the accounts, Justice Kolawole said there was nothing urgent about the application in view of the fact that the operating licence of the liquidated African Express Bank to which Offor allegedly owed N9.2billion debt was withdrawn since 2006 without NDIC doing anything until 2014.
He said assuming any step was taken in respect of the said debt, the court was not aware of such.
The judge consequently gave all the companies owned by Offor to show cause why the order being sought against them should not be granted.
“The applicant failed in his duty to state the steps taken so far to recover the money from the 1st respondent. In doing justice, the court must also consider the rights of Offor to arrive at a balance.
“The respondents shall within seven days show cause why the court should not proceed to grant the order sought by the applicant.
“The respondent should also provide the applicant with the information required to assuage its fears” he added.
The court ruled further that “the banks where the defendant has his accounts should place a close watch on the accounts of the defendants and report any suspicious transactions to the Central Bank of Nigeria.
“The banks should also be informed that the accounts are subjects of litigation.
“The preservatory order is necessary to preserve the rest of the case because by nature they are interventionary measure.
However, Offor’s lawyer, yesterday accused the NDIC of breaching the terms of agreement reached with his client whom he said had almost finished settling the said debts.
He submitted that the NDIC went behind their back to try and confiscate the properties of their client noting that they would meet them in court at the next adjourned date fixed for July 15.
NDIC had proceeded against Offor after all efforts to recover a total N9.2billion owed the liquidated African Express Bank failed.
