BY Innocent Anaba

Some shareholders of Afribank Plc have appealed last week’s Federal High Court, Lagos, decision, which granted an application by Nigerian Deposit Insurance Corporation, NDIC, to liquidate the bank.

Justice Charles Archibong of the Federal High Court, Lagos, had wound up Afribank on the ground that it was no longer necessary for the bank to continue to exist since the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, had revoked its operating licence and same had been properly gazetted.

The bank’s shareholders, through their counsel, Mr. Onyebuchi Aniakor, in the appeal before the Court of Appeal, are contending that the trial judge erred in law and committed grave miscarriage of justice by his order.

The shareholders, Igbrude Oke, Rasak Mumuni, Akinsanya Sunday, Suleiman Babatunde and Igba Olatomide, on behalf of themselves and other shareholders of the bank, are contending in the appeal that Justice Archibong struck out a preliminary objection they filed to the winding up petition, without hearing same.

They argued that the winding up order was made by Justice Archibong, when the matter was slated for mention and not hearing, adding that by so doing the judge had committed grave miscarriage of justice.

The shareholders, in the preliminary objection, which they brought as a party interested in the winding up petition, had argued that there was already a suit pending before Justice John Tsoho of the same court, challenging the take-over of Afribank by CBN, adding that the winding up petition was merely calculated to overreach the suit before Justice Tsoho.

Though the court had struck out the preliminary objection, the shareholders in an application for stay before the court, are praying for an order setting aside the striking out of the preliminary objection, and an order directing that the objection should be heard by another judge of the Federal High Court on merit.