Nigerian Billionaire, Others Battle Over Ownership of 9mobile Amid Shut Down Rumour
- Hearings before an Abuja Federal High Court have resumed, adding to the ongoing conflict over EMTS's ownership and management
- Along with a proposed statement of defense and counterclaim, Keystone Bank has submitted an application to become a party to the case
- Plaintiff Abubakar Funtua sued Theophilus Danjuma, his business LH Telecommunication Limited, and the other defendants over ownership
Legit.ng journalist Zainab Iwayemi has 5-year-experience covering the Economy, Technology, and Capital Market.
A federal high court in Abuja has resumed hearings, further complicating the continuing battle over ownership and management of Emerging Markets Telecommunication Service, or EMTS, the holder and operator of the 9Mobile telecommunication license.
Source: Getty Images
Vanguard reported that Keystone Bank has filed an application to join the complaint as a party, together with a proposed statement of defence and counterclaim that reveals triable issues and shows the applicant's interest in the case.
Among other things, the bank is requesting in its counterclaim that the resolution of the fifth defendant, which was passed on December 7, 2023, reducing the third defendant's percentage stake, interest, or shareholding in the sixth defendant to counterclaim to about 4.5 per cent and raising the share capital of the sixth defendant to a counterclaim from N90,000,000 to N2,000,000,000, is void.
Nigerian billionaire General Theophilus Danjuma (retd) and his company LH Telecommunication Limited, along with the other defendants, were sued by plaintiff Abubakar Funtua over the ownership and control of EMTS trading under the name 9Mobile.
The other defendants include Hayatu Hassan Hadeija, Teleology Nigerian Limited, the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Seltrix Limited (sued as the first defendant), and one Mohammed Edewor, a director in Teleology Nigeria Limited.
A motion by Keystone Bank to be added as a party to the complaint with a statement of defence, counterclaim, and charge of fraud against certain defendants in suit No. /ABJ/CS/1971/2024 was presented to the parties at the case's resumed hearing.
The motion states among other things that:
“The applicant, Keystone Bank, also intends to present a counter-claim and has prepared a proposed statement of defence and counter-claim which discloses triable and fecund issues and also demonstrates applicant’s interest in the subject of this suit.
“The case of the applicant, is that the resolution passed by the 3rd defendant on May 9, 2023, approving the change of control/ownership of the 5th defendant from the 3rd defendant to the 8th defendant, in violation of the facilities agreements (Deed of Share charge) between the applicant and 3rd defendant, and the orders of the court made on February 20, 2023, in suit No. FHC/L/CS/297/2023 is illegal, null and void.
“The case of the applicant, as set out in the proposed statement of defence and counter-claim, is that the resolution passed by the 3rd defendant on May 9, 2023, approving the change of control/ownership of the 5th defendant from the 3rd defendant to the 8th defendant, in violation of the facilities agreements (Deed of Share charge) between the applicant and 3rd defendant, and the orders of the court made on February 20, 2023, in suit No. FHC/L/CS/297/2023 is illegal, null and void.
Source: Getty Images
In a statement released Friday in Lagos, the management of the telecom company 9mobile denied reports that it had shut down operations in Nigeria.
It noted that the allegations were completely unfounded and intended only to incite needless fear among its loyal customers.
“We understand that some customers have recently faced challenges, particularly with Mobile Number Portability (MNP), a service that enables seamless network switching.
9mobile explains service disruption, makes promises
Legit.ng reported that the management of 9mobile has apologised to Nigerians following a recent service disruption that affected various parts of the country.
In a press statement, 9mobile attributed the disruption to multiple fibre cuts and damage to its network infrastructure.
Customers have reported that the network outage began on Saturday and persisted until Wednesday, causing significant disruption to their connectivity and phone calls, Leadership reports.
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Source: Legit.ng
