Edward Akinlade, the Group Managing Director of Suru Worldwide Ventures Nigeria Limited, has applauded the Supreme Court’s verdict on the seizure of its assets by the Asset Management Company of Nigeria (AMCON).
The company has been embroiled in a protracted legal battle since AMCON forcefully took over some of its properties under cloudy circumstances.
AMCON had serially lost in most of these cases despite initiating or appealing against the court decisions but still went ahead to confiscate prime properties of the company and allegedly sold some without legal authority.
However, in a landmark decision on Friday, February 16, 2024, the Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the Court of Appeal Lagos voiding AMCON’s takeover of the landed property of Suru Worldwide.
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Justice Emmanuel Agim, a member of the Supreme Court panel, in his lead judgement, dismissed the appeal brought to it by AMCON and affirmed the lower court’s decision to halt the company’s takeover, and ordered a new hearing at the High Court.
He declared: “I find no merit in this appeal. The judgement of the court of appeal is hereby affirmed.”
The apex court held that AMCON’s possession of Suru World Wide’s properties which was premised on a Federal High Court order was illegal and ordered AMCON to go back to the Federal High Court, Lagos, and start afresh as if nothing had been ordered and join Suru Worldwide in a fresh lawsuit.
Initially, the Federal High Court Order had empowered AMCON to seize three of his Suru Worldwide’s prized assets, which were located in the high brow areas in Ikeja; one is at 12, Allen; the second at 86, Opebi while the third is located at 12, Rev Ogunbiyi.
The order was allegedly suspiciously given in AMCON’s suit, which did not join Suru Worldwide, a victim of the judgement in the matter.
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Akinlade told a press conference he addressed the Supreme Court judgement was remarkable and attests to the fact that the judiciary remains the last hope of the common man.
He added that the apex court’s decision has helped to restore hope for companies who have fallen victim to AMCON’s unscrupulous high-handedness and dispossessing individuals and businesses of their valuable assets in the name of helping to resolve the non-performing loan assets.
Tracing the origin of his travail in the hands of AMCO, Akinlade recalled: “We took a loan from Oceanic Bank in those days for about N13.5 billion and part of it was invested in Best Western Hotel. Part of it was used to buy a lot of land in Ikeja, GRA. And we were paying the loan.
“Towards the tail end of the former CBN governor, Lamido Sanusi’s arrival, John Aboh, who was appointed as the MD of Oceanic Bank, was just selling our properties behind our back. We were here, how could somebody tell us they have bought our lands? Oceanic Bank was doing that. And then, they wrote us a letter that they are not giving us any more money, that we have spent part of the loan. All the credits in our bank accounts were taken.
“One day, we were just told that whatever was left in our loan was sold to AMCON for N8.5 billion. So, that is the contention. When AMCON came in, they went to the Federal High Court that the court should agree that they had bought the loan properly. However, the case was dismissed because AMCON should not be buying performing loans. This was a judgement AMCON was told Suru does not owe them any money. Then they started seeking what I call ‘Jankara Judgement’ from other courts.
“And while all the debt issues have been dismissed as abuse of court process, AMCON lawyer, Joseph Nwobike, and the then AMCON MD, Ahmed Kuru, took the police to court on recovery of three of Suru World Wide’s assets. Without mentioning us in the suit, they got a ‘Jankara judgement’ against a functioning Best Western Hotel in Ikeja, Lagos State.
“On 21st of September, 2017, 200 strong men of the Nigeria Mobile Police led by Officer Uwah and CSP Eloho invaded the Best Western Hotel in Ikeja to send us out. They destroyed everything we had in it. Life was lost a few days later due to injuries sustained by victims. Their action cost us a lot, over 200 jobs were lost, our business goodwill was destroyed, our international partners ran away, over 500 contractors went into debt, and there were unending litigations against Suru Worldwide by guests.
“I was ‘tear-gassed’ and was rushed to the hospital on the day of the invasion. I spent three days in the hospital before I could open my eyes. AMCON under Ahmed Kuru was bent on destroying Suru WorldWide, as he had done to many companies while the case was pending in court.”
On the Supreme Court ruling on AMCON’s possession of Suru WorldWide’s properties, Akinlade said that the court had shown courage and firmness in its judgement, which means there won’t be room for Illegality as AMCON has no choice other than to obey the court order and the rule of law.
Meanwhile, he advised President Bola Tinubu to probe the operations of AMCON since its inception, especially how it was run under its deposed and immediate past MD, Ahmed Kuru.
“It has taken us seven years before we finally got vindicated by the Supreme Court. All AMCON MDs, past and present, who run such illegality would be held accountable for this type of injustice in the long term.
“While Suru World Wide awaits a signed Supreme Court injunction, a pre-action notice of damages claim has been filed for AMCON to pay a sum of N28b for direct and indirect pain inflicted on the company, its directors, and my person and management team. Once the hard copy of the Supreme Court is handed over to us, our lawyer will take action to repossess our possession.
“AMCON must obey court order and hand back all Suru properties and titles documents in their possession. The Supreme Court is final, when the Supreme Court speaks, only Jehovah can overturn its decision.”
Akinlade expressed his dismay at the nonchalant attitude of AMCON, as he said he observed that renovation works were still in progress at the Best Western Hotel despite the Supreme Court ruling on the said property.
He said “We know that work is still ongoing at the Best Western Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos, having been destroyed. Now new design buildings have been added. Then I continue to ask; who is doing it? We don’t know! Has AMCON sold it while the case was pending in court? We don’t know!”
He added, however, that an AMCON official confided in him that AMCON under Ahmed Kuru sold the hotel last year against the advice given by their lawyers not to.
“Whoever is the buyer must have failed to do full due diligence or maybe AMCON had offered them an undertaking to refund their money. We had already done the needful by registering caution on our title at the Lagos State Government Secretariat at Alausa, warning buyers of pending litigation.
To save the country from similar embarrassment from AMCON in the future, Akinlade advised President Tinubu to write off all the debt profiles with AMCON and shut the agency down for it has done more harm than good.
“Government interventions and government grants are key. If you scrap AMCON today and you give grants to those who owe loans, they would be relieved and be able to consider expanding their businesses. So, let the government shut down AMCON and sell whatever is left at a discount to the third party and move on. Nigeria will grow and Nigeria will be better.”