Somto Bisina
The Federal High Court Sitting in Lagos has announced a new adjournment date of September 5 for the pending applications in the ongoing suit filed by shareholders of First Bank against First Bank of Nigeria Holdings, effectively postponing the holding of its Annual General Meeting.
The adjournment was decided by Justice Akintayo Aluko following the submission of arguments from all parties involved in the case.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelMr. Sunday Aborisade, one of the aggrieved shareholders in FBN Holdings, sought the court’s intervention to set aside the interim order granted on July 29 by Justice Nicholas Oweibo.
This order had directed FBN Holdings to halt its Annual General Meeting, initially scheduled for August 15. Aborisade’s counsel, Kazeem Gbadamosi, SAN, filed and presented the application to set aside the order.
During the recent hearing, Aborisade requested Justice Aluko to join him as a party in the proceedings. He likened the AGM to an essential market that cannot be prevented from taking place. He stated, “My Lord, the order ought not to have been made if the facts are laid bare before the court.
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I urge my Lord to set it aside. Apart from setting aside the order, I also urge the court to join me as a party, as the order affected me. Assuming the meeting was not held virtually, I would not have received my dividends. The AGM is like a market which can not be stopped from holding.”
In response, counsel for FBN Holdings, Mutalubi Adebayo, SAN, presented another application seeking a stay of proceedings. However, Justice Aluko rejected this move, emphasizing that filing a Notice of Appeal is not an automatic basis for a stay of proceedings. He noted that FBN Holdings did not challenge the court’s jurisdiction in its Notice of Appeal.
Counsel for the aggrieved shareholders, Muiz Banire, SAN, highlighted that the application was not ready for hearing. He also pointed out the apparent disregard for the court’s interim order.
Justice Aluko observed the presence of pending applications that were not yet ready for consideration. As a result, he adjourned the proceedings to a date after the Annual General Conference of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA).
This delay will provide all parties with the opportunity to submit necessary responses to the ongoing pending applications.
