Appeal Court vacates interim orders against Seplat
Sopuruchi Onwuka
Seplat Energy Plc has declared that the orders of an appellate court reinstating its board chairman and executive officers earlier sacked by a High Court which heard grievances of factions in the company.
The ex parte Interim Orders granted on 11 May 2023 by the Hon. Justice I.E. Ekwo of the Federal High Court, Abuja in suit number FHC/ABJ/CS/626/2023 – Juliet Gbaka & 2 others v. Seplat Energy Plc & 13 others, and served on the Company on 12 May 2023 had directed the Chairman and Executive Committee of the company to leave their positions.
The Chairman of the company, Mr Basil Omiyi, declared in a statement he authorized for publication that the company has secured the declaration of an Appeal Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja suspending the earlier order.
Seplat Energy declared its pleasure to announce that whereas the sack order was vacated, the appellate court subsequently adjourned pending applications to 30 May 2023 for hearing.
Z”As previously announced, the Interim Orders were made pursuant to a petition which was the third in a series of duplicative petitions filed by minority shareholders between March and April 2023.
“The Interim Orders primarily restrained the Board Chairman, named Independent Non-Executive Directors, the Chief Operating Officer and the Company Secretary from operating or functioning as officers of Seplat Energy in any capacity, or otherwise conducting the affairs of the Company, and directed the Securities & Exchange Commission to appoint suitable persons to run the affairs of the Company.
“Seplat Energy remains confident that the courts will appropriately address the frivolous litigations brought by a combination of 13 minority shareholders holding less than 800 shares out of 589 million shares (or 0.0001% of the Company’s issued shares),” the company stated in a media release.
