December 09, (THEWILL) – The Court of Appeal, Lagos, has voided the sale of Intercontinental Hotels, Lagos, by Polaris Bank and Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON).
A unanimous judgement delivered by three Justices of the Appeal Court: Jimi Olukayode Bada, who read the lead judgement; Muhammad Ibrahim Sirajo and Peter Oyinkenimiemi Affen, the appellate court ordered a return of the facility to the original owner, Milan Industries Ltd.
The court held that Milan Industries Ltd had fully paid the bank the Two Billion Naira (N2 billion) mortgage facility it secured from Polaris Bank before the hotel was taken over and sold by AMCON and the bank.
Polaris, then known as Skye Bank, had put the management of the five-star hotel under the receivership of Kunle Ogunba, an arrangement that was nullified by a Federal High Court in Lagos.
Despite this, the bank went ahead and sold the hotel to another company, 11 PLC, a move that was challenged at the Appeal Court by the lawyers of Milan Industries Ltd, Messrs Ahmed Raji SAN and Tunde Kasunmu of Prof A.B Kasunmu SAN chambers.
Milan Industries Ltd had taken a facility from Skye Bank to part finance the hotel.
The Milan Group has up till 2021 to pay back the facility, but in a curious move, the bank obtained an interim order to take over the management of the hotel, an order that was vacated when the suit was struck out by the court on March 20th, 2018.
According to the Certified True Copy of the judgement signed and released on Wednesday, by the Senior Registrar of the court, A. G. Balogun, the appellate court held that the two issues Milan Industries (Appellant/Cross Respondent) contested in the suit No CA/LAG/CV/476/2021, were resolved in its favour.
In the lead judgement, Justice Jimi Bada stated: “With the resolution of Issues No. 1 and 2 in favour of the Cross Respondent and against the Cross-Appellants (Polaris Bank, AMCON and 11 PLC), it is my view that this cross-appeal lacks merit and it is hereby dismissed.”
While agreeing with the lead judgement, another member of the appeal court panel, Justice Ibrahim Sirajo, held that “the appellant insisted that it had paid over Two Billion Naira in liquidating the facility and that as at the time the 1st respondent (Polaris Bank) entered into an agreement to sell the appellant’s secured asset to the 2nd respondent (AMCON), there was no collateralised and secured asset to sell to the 2nd respondent. It was also the case of the appellant that at the time the 2nd respondent sold the appellant’s Intercontinental Hotel to the 3rd respondent, the appellant had discharged its obligation under the legal mortgage by paying the amount secured by the property.”
To buttress his position, Justice Sirajo ruled that “I adopt his lordship’s reasoning and conclusion in the leading judgement as mine in also allowing the appeal. I abide by all the orders made in the leading judgement including that of the costs.”
While also concurring with the lead judgement by Justice Bada, the third member of the appeal panel, Justice Peter Affen, said, “The judicial reasoning and conclusions reached on the issues raised accord with mine, and I hereby affirm my agreement with the leading judgement which allowed the main appeal and dismissed the cross appeal. I equally abide by the orders on the costs.”
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