Unfreeze 18 frozen accounts belonging to lawyer, court orders CBN governor

A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja, on Monday ordered some banks to immediately unfreeze 18 bank accounts operated by a Constitutional Lawyer, Ojukwu Chikaosolu and his company, Stabilization Energy Ltd.

The trial Judge, Justice Ahmed Mohammed made the order while delivering a ruling on two applications filed by the lawyer, challenging the post no debit placed on his 18 accounts on the directive of the CBN.

Justice Mohammed held that from affidavit evidence before the court, it was only the applicant (Ojukwu Chikaosolu) that collected the $4000 BTA/PTA, and exhibited all travel documents to really show that he travelled and utilized the said money. The CBN can only attach the account used in obtaining the PTA and not all the accounts of the customer.

The Judge held that “I have perused the counter affidavit of the respondent (CBN), but I have not seen any averment denying that the applicant did not utilize the $4000 BTA/PTA.
“Publishing the names of alleged violators of the CBN Forex policy without annexing documents leaves much to be desired.

“Another disturbing issue is that accounts of other defendants who never received the BTA/PTA, and never utilized it, were equally frozen on the directive of the CBN.

“Having failed to discharge the burden of proof placed by law on the respondent, this court holds that the action of the respondent (CBN) in directing banks to freeze the accounts of the applicant, is preemptive, unlawful, and cannot stand in eyes of the law.

“It is hereby set aside. The affected banks are hereby directed to unfreeze the bank accounts of the applicants immediately”, Justice Mohammed held and however, refused to strike out the names of the 178th, 179th, 181st, 182nd and 184th Defendants from the suit, saying such order can only be made in the substantive suit.

The CBN Governor had, by an ex-parte application dated and filed on March 2, 2022, applied for an order freezing 383 bank accounts for 180 days on the grounds that it was investigating allegations that certain customers of commercial/ merchant banks received foreign exchange under the false pretext of international travel.

Consequently, on March 14, the court made an order empowering the CBN Governor (Respondent) to direct the Head Offices of the Banks to freeze the accounts of customers alleged to have received BTA/PTA under the false pretence of travelling abroad.

However, in a motion on notice dated April 6, filed by Ojukwu Chikaosolu, the applicant prayed for an order setting aside the order made on 14th March 2022, empowering the CBN Governor, (Respondent) to direct the Head Offices of Banks to freeze accounts alleged to have received BTA/PTA under false pretence.

An affidavit in support of the application stated, “That contrary to the reason adduced by the Respondent for the application, the 1st Applicant Ojukwu Chikaosolu) herein travelled over 20 times in 2021 but only utilized Personal Travel Allowance (PTA) once, on the 12th of October 2021.

“That the 1st Applicant obtained the said PTA from Zenith Bank Maitama, Abuja simply to satisfy his account officer. That the 2nd Applicant (Stabilization Energy Limited) never applied for PTA/BTA (Business Travel Allowance) at any time whatsoever and has not conducted any business.”

IN CASE YOU MISSED THESE FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE