Court Fines UBA N30 million for Illegally Freezing Customer’s Account

The court has ordered the bank to immediately refund $163,592 withheld from the company, Micoz Bluelink Enterprise.

Mr Lifu held that the bank had no legal basis for freezing the business domiciliary account or transferring funds from the account without a court order or notifying the customer.

The judge described the act as “a breach of the banker-customer’s relationship”.

According to him, the UBA’s action was ultra vires its powers, reckless and bereft of mercy.

The certified true copy of the judgment, delivered on July 25, was made available to journalists on Wednesday in Abuja.

The plaintiff, Akpasi Oziegbe, trading under the name and style of Micoz Bluelink Enterprise, had, in the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1412/2023, sued UBA as the sole defendant.

The plaintiff’s legal team, Chikaosolu Ojukwu, and Adeyemo Richard, exyplained that the firm was incorporated on March 19, 2021, with a domiciliary account opened thereafter for trading operations.

On July 20, 2022, the company discovered that the account had been restricted by the bank with a balance of $163.8 million meant for supply contracts.

“The applicant made several enquiries to the bank seeking reasons for the account restriction, but the bank failed to respond or unfreeze the account,” Mr Ojukwu said.

Mr Richard, equally, contended in one of the sittings that the bank allegedly transferred the sum without the company’s authorisation on August 19, 2023.

The plaintiff, in the affidavit in support, averred that “there is no mention of fraud in the call-back request presented by the bank, and the document lacks proper endorsement and authenticity.”

In its defence, UBA, through its counsel, Kalat Jatau, admitted the inflow of $163.8 million but claimed the funds were flagged as suspicious.

The bank said it filed a suspicious transaction report with the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit and temporarily restricted the account pending enhanced customer due diligence.

The bank alleged that “the applicant was informed of the restriction and requested further documentation, which, upon review, was found to be inconsistent with actual transaction amounts”.

It further argued that the funds were recalled following a SWIFT instruction from its correspondent bank, Citi Bank.

Delivering the judgment, Mr Lifu held that UBA breached its fiduciary duty and acted without court approval.

“The bank failed to inform the applicant of reasons for the restriction and proceeded with unilateral withdrawal, thereby breaching the banker-customer contract,” he held.

On the validity of the bank’s evidence, the judge found UBA’s Exhibit ‘A’ defective.

“There is no mention of ‘fraud’ or ‘fraudulent’ in the document, which only states ‘Possible Duplicate’ and does not justify a call back,” he said.

The judge also recognised the significant economic loss and business disruption caused to the applicant following the over-one-year restriction.

According to Mr Lifu, there is no proof the bank took appropriate steps before restricting the account or withdrawing funds, nor did it disclose where the money was transferred.

The judge held that customer’s funds could only be withdrawn from their account “pursuant to an unequivocal instruction by the customer or a court order”, and that neither of which was presented.

He declared UBA’s actions “illegal, unconstitutional and a breach of banker-customer relationship”. The judge, therefore, cited the bank’s conduct, the applicant’s status and economic factors in awarding damages.

These, he said, included “the continual depreciation of the naira”.

Mr Lifu, thereafter, awarded ₦30 million in damages in favour of Micoz Bluelink Enterprise with “post-judgment interest of 10 per cent until the judgement sum is fully liquidated.”

The judge also ordered the reversal of the $163,592 withdrawal.

(NAN)

Dapo Abiodun’s Political Vendetta: What Kayode Akinmade Must Learn Before Speaking for Ogun State

The cries of political vendetta against Governor Dapo Abiodun are no longer whispers — they are now a roar across Ogun State. The latest trigger? Fresh threats to demolish properties linked to former governor and current senator, Otunba Gbenga Daniel.

At the center of the governor’s defense machinery is his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Kayode Akinmade, who has been quick to dismiss the warnings and concerns from Senator Daniel’s camp as nothing more than a “wolf cry.”

But Akinmade — an indigene of Idanre in Ondo State and a former Commissioner for Information under Governor Olusegun Mimiko — must be reminded that Ogun politics is not his native Ondo politics. Here, scars run deep, memories are long, and bulldozer politics is not easily forgiven.

Only two years ago, in a shocking midnight raid, Governor Abiodun ordered the demolition of a multimillion-naira complex in Ijebu Ode belonging to Yeye Olufunke Daniel, wife of the senator. The ₦5 billion structure, completed and awaiting commissioning, was flattened under the cover of darkness. Locals still say, “A dynamite would have done a cleaner job.”

At the time, the governor swore it wasn’t political — just as he is swearing now. But the court of public opinion and subsequent legal tussles told another story: it was pure political vendetta.

This is the same governor who, on September 11, 2023, publicly boasted of how he “saved” another property of OGD from demolition back when he assumed office in 2019, trying to paint himself as a magnanimous facilitator. Yet the contradiction is glaring: how does a man who once sought refuge in Asoludero Court — OGD’s stronghold — in March 2019, now target the very symbol of the support that helped him into office?

Let’s refresh memories for Mr. Akinmade: in 2019, when Dapo Abiodun was fighting to survive politically against the hostile machinery of his predecessor, it was OGD who publicly endorsed him, opening political doors and mobilizing his network to ensure Abiodun’s victory. That was no small favor — it was a kingmaker’s blessing.

Today, that same Asoludero Court is reportedly on the demolition list. If this isn’t political vendetta, then the word has lost its meaning.

So, Mr. Akinmade, before you rush to insult the intelligence of Ogun people with your press statements, thread softly. This is not Ondo State where you can play outsider politics without consequence. Ogun people know their history, their heroes, and their betrayers.

And tell your boss this: no bulldozer will ever erase the political memory of Ogun State. If he tries, the backlash will be louder than any machine he sends in the night.

Political Vendetta Gone Wild: Abiodun Targets Gbenga Daniel’s Mansions and Hotels for Demolition

The political battle in Ogun State has reached boiling point as Governor Dapo Abiodun moves against his predecessor, Senator Otunba Gbenga Daniel, in what Daniel’s camp is calling a “brazen and shameless abuse of power.”

In a dramatic twist late Friday afternoon, August 8, agents allegedly acting on the governor’s orders swooped on Daniel’s sprawling Asoludero Court residence, the multi-billion-naira Conference Hotel in Sagamu, and its Annex—pasting contravention, quit, and demolition notices on all three properties at once.

The government claims the buildings violate provisions of the Ogun State Urban and Regional Planning and Development Law No. 61 of 2022. But Daniel’s team says the accusations are absurd, pointing out that the properties were legally built years before the law even existed—Asoludero Court in 2004, Conference Hotel in 2013, and the Annex in 2015.

“This is not governance; it’s political gangsterism,” declared Steve Oliyide of the OGD Media Office. “Abiodun is weaponizing the law to destroy an opponent, trampling on due process, and using intimidation in place of justice.”

The fiery statement draws parallels to the notorious midnight demolition of DATKEM Plaza in Ijebu Ode—owned by Daniel’s wife—in September 2023, carried out under the cover of darkness on what critics described as “flimsy excuses.” That case is still in court, with the state government suffering repeated legal defeats.

Political watchers say the latest action signals a dangerous escalation in Ogun’s political wars, raising fears of a descent into open hostility ahead of the next election cycle.

As at press time, the Ogun State Government had not commented on the allegations, but tension in the state’s political circles is at an all-time high.