BY HENRY UMORU
ABUJA—FOR referring to what they described as false claim by Folio Communication that the case on the sale of The Daily Times  of Nigeria Plc,  DTN, was still in court, ex-workers of  the newspaper conglomerate are poised for a battle with Senate President, Senator David Mark.

According to the former workers, reference to the said petition by Folio was designed as a subtle move to put to rest discussions on the recommendation of the Senate Adhoc Committee on the Privatisation of Government Enterprises which stripped Folio Communication of its controversial 140 million shares.

The former workers, in a petition to the Senate President, weekend, stressed that the court had in a ruling to Suit No. FHC/L/CP/1328/2009, which the Senate President alluded to, stripped Folio Communication of its 140 million shares in DTN which it allegedly acquired after sale of the company’s asset.

In a two-page petition signed by their lawyer, Mr. T. Okundoye, the workers explained that Folio Communication had since ceased to own a single share in DTN, just as they explained how Folio Communication allegedly sold some of the company’s property in London and mortgaged its Agidingbi head office to obtain N800 million loan  from Afribank Plc.

According to the petition, ‘’it is our clients instruction to clarify to (Senate president) that there are three valid and subsisting and final judgments of court which have thankfully sacked Folio communication from DTN.

‘’The application of folio communication to the court of Appeal for stay of execution was also dismissed. Folio communication did not put a kobo in the acquisition of DTN, to meet the purchase price they obtained an investment from another company in exchange for 40 percent of the shares and then mortgage the assets of DTN.”

It would be recalled that Senator Mark  had during the debate last week Wednesday on the report of the senate ad-hoc committee on the sale of government enterprises, referred to a petition by Folio communication that the case of the sale of DTN was still pending in court.

Reacting on the floor of the senate, chairman of the committee, senator Ahmad Lawan who dismissed the said pending court case as false, stressed that the committee only upheld the ruling of the court which had since sacked folio from DTN.