Contempt: Wema Bank’s MD, 6 other official must appear Tuesday – Court
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There is no reprieve yet for the Wema Bank Plc and its seven officials cited for contempt, as a Federal High Court sitting in Lagos, Southwest Nigeria reinforced its order compelling the said official to appear before the court on Tuesday to explain why committal to prison order should not be made against them.
When the matter was mentioned on Monday, only the Secretary of the bank, Johnson Lebile was present.
Other officials of the bank charged for contempt are Ademola Adebise, managing director; Moruf Oseni, deputy managing director; Wole Akinleye, executive director and Folake Sanu, executive director.
Lebile told the court that the chairman of the bank, Babatunde Kasali travelled abroad, why other Directors ordered to appear before the court today are not available.
He explained to the court that the bank refused to obey the order of the court to pay the judgement sum because the bank had filed an appeal against the ruling of the court and also filed stay of execution of the judgement of the court.
However, the lawyer to the bank officials cited for contempt, Mr. Wemimo Ogunde, suggested to the court that he could advise Wema Bank to pay the judgement sum into the account of the Chief Registrar of the court, since there was appeal against the judgement of the court and application for stay of execution of the said judgement and other pending application so that the outcome of the appeal would not be made nugatory.
However, the counsel to Heritage Bank, Chief Ajibola Aribisala SAN, in a counter argument told the court that the business of the day was for the parties cited for contempt to appear before the court to explain why they should not be sent to prison for flagrant disobedience of order of the court.
He urged the court to issue bench warrant against those officials that were not in court, while the Company’s Secretary present in court should be sent to prison to show that the court was not a toothless bulldog.
In his reaction, Ogunde, while citing certain rules of the court said last Friday, the court issued order compelling the officers of Wema Bank cited for contempt to appear before the court and that by virtue of the rule of the court Sundays and public holidays were not to be counted, saying that in view of this provision, the time for them to appear would expire tomorrow.