Justice Chuka Obiozor of the Federal High Court, Lagos State, has restrained the management of Shoreline Power Company from interfering with a receiver-manager, Taiwo Ogbara, appointed by Ecobank Nigeria to manage its assets. Shoreline Power is run by Kola Karim, a Lagos-based billionaire oilman.
The other defendants listed in the matter are Orikolade Karim, Tunde Karim, Yinka Karim, Marc Hasenclever and Graeme Stout.
The court restrained them from obstructing Ogbara in the course of his duties as Ecobank’s Receiver-Manager pending the determination of the motion on notice.
Obiozor also granted an order of interim injunction restraining the defendants and/or their agents from tampering with or disposing of the firm’s assets covered by a Deed of All Assets Debenture of March 18, 2013 between Ecobank and Shoreline registered at the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC).
He directed the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) and his men to assist the receiver-manager in carrying out his duties with respect to the firm’s property and equipment.
The judge also granted a Mareva Injunction restraining all Nigerians banks from honouring any mandate presented by the defendants for the withdrawal of any funds in Shoreline’s accounts pending the hearing of the motion on notice.
The court directed all the banks involved to render within forty-eight hours the company’s statements of account and to transfer such funds to an account as may be requested by the receiver-manager.
In a supporting affidavit to the ex-parte application, an Ecobank employee, Donatus Onoja, said Shoreline was indebted to the bank to the tune of 4.6 billion Naira.
The bank said it wrote the firm to demand the payment of its outstanding debts, but received no response.
Onoja added that despite the receipt of the demand letters, Shoreline Power “neither responded nor did it comply or display any genuine willingness to fulfill its repayment obligations to the first applicant within the time prescribed.”
The bank said the firm utilised the loan and refused to repay it, contrary to their agreement.
The case comes on July 23, 2019.