Dangote’s suit incompetent, amounts to forum shopping, Kogi Govt tells court

Justice Nyako had, on Oct  26, made an interim order restraining the Kogi government from shutting down Dangote Cement PLC at Obajana in the state pending the hearing and determination of the substantive suits.

The court also stopped the state government from disrupting or suspending the activities of Dangote Coal Mines Ltd and Dangote Industries Ltd in Okaba, Ankpa Local Government Area and in Olamaboro Local Government Area respectively.

The judge had given the interim order following two separate ex-parte motions moved by counsel for the companies, Regina Okotie-Eboh, but filed by Rickey Tarfa, SAN.

NAN reports that the Kogi government and Dangote group recently locked horns over the ownership of Obajana cement factory.

The state government had, on Oct. 13, given the cement factory at Obajana 48 hours to shut down in honour of the Kogi House of Assembly which ordered the company to sealed until the conglomerate furnishes it with the requisite documents demanded by the state legislature.

But the companies, in the first motion ex-parte marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/1876/22, had sued the Kogi House of Assembly, Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Federal Ministry of Mines and Steel Development and Mining Cadastre Office as 1st to 4th defendants respectively.

In the second motion marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/1877/22, all the defendants in the first application, except Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), were listed as defendants.

The plaintiffs in these suits are Dangote Coal Mines Ltd., Dangote Cement PLC and Dangote Industries Ltd.

But in the preliminary objections, the Kogi government challenged the jurisdiction of the court to hear the suits which it described as “incompetent.”

In a 14 ground-argument brought before the court by counsel to the state government, Mr Muhammed, the state said that the plaintiffs had instituted similar suit at a Lokoja division of the FHC.

Muhammed said that the plaintiffs, in a suit number: FHC/LKJ/CS/49/2022, had sued the Kogi House of Assembly seeking the determination of the exact question in the current suit.

The senior lawyer told Justice Nyako that they, however, quickly withdrew the suit when the Lokoja court refused to grant their ex-parte application for interim injunction.

“The plaintiffs have now filed the suit before this honourable court with the intention of obtaining a favourable outcome in the suit.

“The filling of the instant suit before this honourable court is forum shopping, that ought to be discouraged and condemned,” Muhammed argued

He said premised on the above, the plaintiffs’ suits are incompetent and cannot be entertained by the curt.

The lawyer said the plaintiffs, by the amended originating summons, challenged the power of the state assembly to investigate the loss of revenue internally generated in the state.

He said they also challenged its authority to issue a resolution to suspend, disrupt or in any manner stop or shut down the mining operations of the plaintiffs or any of their subsidiary companies.