By Onyewuchi Ojinnaka
Senior Correspondent
Mrs Nosazena Enaholo, daughter of former Edo State governor Lucky Igbinedion and three others have filed an application before a Federal High Court Lagos seeking to set aside the judgement sum of $3,286,629.92, and other orders made against them by Justice Saliu Saidu of same court of jurisdiction
Other applicants to the application which is before Justice Ayotunde Olawale Faji are a Nigerian businessman Kennedy Uwagboe, and two limited liability companies, Jupiter Asset Management Company Limited and Mid-Western Oil and Gas Limited.
It would be recalled that Justice Saidu had sometime in 2016, awarded the said judgment sum against the defendants/applicants after Diamond bank Plc (plaintiff) had filed a suit on June 18, 2015, praying that the court to enter the suit for hearing in the “undefended list”and mark the writ of summons accordingly.
The bank anchored its argument on the fact that Jupiter Asset Management Company Limited borrowed $3,500,000 from Diamond bank to acquire additional stake in a company called Eurafric Energy Limited.
It was the contention of the bank that the loan was guaranteed by Mid-Western Oil and Gas Limited, Nosazena Enaholo (Mrs) and Kennedy Uwagboe.
It was also stated in the suit that Diamond bank and Jupiter Asset Management Company agreed that the loan be repaid in quarterly instalments of $437,500 and accrued interest.
According to the averrments it was agreed that repayment should be sourced from proceeds from the quarterly dividends from Mid -Western Oil and Gas Limited but
the defendants/applicants failed to repay the loan, despite repeated demands by the bank, and as a result, the bank sued the defendants to recover the loan.
The court was further told that Jupiter Asset Management Company had admitted its default and had kept requesting for extension and additional days to pay back the loan as evidenced in its letter dated September 4, 2014.
In his judgment therefore, Justice Saidu had declared that, “Based on the failure of the defendants to enter a defence in this suit, I hereby enter judgement in favour of the plaintiff against the defendants jointly and severally as follows :
“USD3, 286, 629.92 being outstanding balance on the loan as at 14th May, 2015.
“Interest on the sum of USD 3, 286, 629.92 at the prevailing bank rate, from 14th May 2015 till judgement is entered.
“Interest on the cumulative sum from the day of Judgement is delivered till the judgement is finally liquidated.
“Sale of 5 million ordinary shares of Mid-Western Oil and Gas Limited being 6.08 percent of the company’s shareholdings held by the Jupiter Asset Management, charged to Diamond bank as security for the loan given to the Jupiter Asset Management company, in partial liquidation of the judgement.
“N100,000 as cost of this legal action.”
Meanwhile after the filling of the application to set aside the judgement sum,no date has been fixed for hearing of the application
