International Energy Services Limited ((IESL) has clarified that Energy House at 94, Awolowo Road, Ikoyi, Lagos, belongs to Ladico Industrial Company Limited, its affiliate, and not to embattled billionaire businessman, Jimoh Ibrahim, or Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON).
Seyi Ayandele, IESL’s legal counsel and company secretary, said the building in question does not belong to Jimoh Ibrahim or any of his companies, “nor is our business in any way connected to him”.
Last week, BusinessDay had reported that AMCON said it had seized assets belonging to Jimoh Ibrahim over indebtedness to the tune of N69.4 billion. The assets seized, AMCON had said, included Energy House at 94, Awolowo Road, Ikoyi, Lagos. It said it acted following the order of Justice Riliwan Aikawa of the Federal High Court, Lagos Division.
But Ayandele, in a reaction sent to BusinessDay entitled ‘ENERGY HOUSE, 94, AWOLOWO ROAD, IKOYI, LAGOS DOES NOT BELONG TO AMCON OR JIMOH IBRAHIM’, said the company has “never had any business dealings whatsoever with Jimoh Ibrahim or any of his companies”.
“The building is owned by our affiliate company, Ladico Industrial Company Ltd and has been so owned for more than 20 years,” he said.
The lawyer said the error was as a result of AMCON’s assumption that any person or business using the term “Energy” in connection with their business is automatically connected with Jimoh Ibrahim.
“This is an assumption that would have been easily corrected if AMCON or their lawyers conducted any basic due diligence checks,” Ayandele said.
IESL Limited’s company secretary explained that AMCON had obtained an ex parte order on 8th June 2016 to take interim possession of Energy House having identified it as Jimoh Ibrahim’s property.
However, IESL Limited approached the court to clarify the matter and “the court ruled in our favour on 9th June, 2016 by vacating its earlier order in its entirety while Yusuf Ali, SAN subsequently tendered his apologies and appealed to us not to pursue any claim against his firm or client”.
He said they were surprised when AMCON turned up again on Wednesday, 18 November, 2020 with another court order in respect of the same matter claiming to seal up the building.
“They defaced our building with spray paint claiming to have taken possession and forcefully took over our building with several armed policemen and forced us out of the building,” Ayandele said.
“Eventually, we got through to their lawyers, Kemi Pineheiro SAN with a copy of the earlier judgment which ought to have been in their possession and they admitted their error because our court order of 9th June, 2016 remains valid and subsisting and their current action is in flagrant abuse of court process and disobedience of a lawful court order,” he noted.
Ayandele said that by close of business, AMCON’s agents returned to unseal the building, remove the detachment of policemen and attempted to remove the spray paint with which they defaced the building.
All efforts to reach Jude Nwauzor, AMCON’s spokesperson, for comment yielded not result as at the time of this report as he didn’t respond to calls or messages sent to his phone.
