Bolingo Hotel Boss, Cyprian Igweh’s Kismet

Bolingo Hotel Boss, Cyprian Igweh’s Kismet

At last, the feud among some members of the family of the late Chief Joseph Uchechukwu Igweh may have been over, as Justice Babatunde Quadri of the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has granted an order restraining Cyprian Okechukwu Igweh, an Abuja-based businessman, from parading himself as the Chairman/Managing Director or Chief Executive Officer of Bolingo Hotels and Towers Limited, Abuja.

Justice Quadri held that by virtue of the notice dated June 15, 2009 by the Board of Directors of the Hotels and the ordinary resolution dated July 6, 2007, he should vacate his office as Director and Chairman/Managing Director of the Bolingo Hotels and Towers.
It was also gathered that the court ordered him to render the account and disclose the financial standing of the Hotels to the counter claimants from October 16, 2006 till the date of judgment (December 14, 2018) in this suit within 14 days from the date of the order.
Also, the court held that the 200, 000, 000 units of shares of the late Igweh in the Hotels have not been transmitted in line with the resolution dated May 18, 2006.

Specifically, the Judge declared that the purported transfer of the 200, 000, 000 million units of shares of the late Igweh in the Hotels by Cyprian to himself was ultra vires, illegal and of no effect whatsoever, “as the said shares were not transmitted with the consent, authority and approval of the Board of Directors of Bolingo Hotels and Towers and or in line with the Articles of Association of the Bolingo Hotels and Towers Limited.”

Consequently, the court ordered that a general meeting of the members of the hotels be held in accordance with the statutory requirements within 21 days from the date of judgment and that a nominee of the Corporate Affairs Commission, not below the rank of principal Manager in the Commission, should attend, guide and supervise both meetings of the Board of Directors and the members of the Hotels at the time of holding the said meetings.
Justice Quadri ordered the Corporate Affairs Commission to produce all the files of the Hotels registered as RC No. 13, 571 at the meetings and also ordered the Commission to regularize the files in its custody by expunging from the said file all forged documents filed by Cyprian with the said Commission as may be identified by the counter claimants at the meetings.

It will be recalled that trouble began when their father died on October 2005 in the Bellview plane c
At that time, two of his children, Chijioke Igweh and Chizoba Igweh, were shareholders in the company.
There was internal wrangling over who takes control of the company based on the perception that the widow, Dr. (Mrs). Becky Igweh, was making moves to have exclusive control of the Hotels.
Thereafter, she was said to have filed a suit at the Federal High Court, Abuja, wherein she sued the three of the children and Corporate Affairs Commission.
But, Cyprian championed the course of his younger siblings and advised them to all go back to the United Kingdom, while he defended the suit filed by the woman.

However, both parties (Cyprian and Bekky) reached an agreement and the term of settlement was only signed by Cyprian.
The terms of settlement were made the consent judgment of the court on October 11, 2006.
Prior to the settlement move, the businessman said to have unilaterally changed the lawyer appointed to represent his interest and that of his siblings who are defendants in the matter and unilaterally appointed Suleiman Usman, SAN, who is now the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Sokoto State.

Part of the terms of settlement was that the wife would relinquish her shares in the Hotel and be paid 10 percent of its value; set aside the Will of their late father, while Cyprian will be head of the family and solely handles the administration of the Estate.
The wife was expected to hand all title documents of the Estate to him and will in turn be paid N250, 000.00 every month as upkeep.

Upon assuming those responsibilities and being granted letters of administration, Cyprian was said to have turned around to say that the Estate belongs to him and declared himself Chairman, Managing Director, Bolingo Hotels and Towers Limited.

In a bid for other Directors to correct this anomaly after discovering various infractions, they issued a notice on Cyprian pursuant to the Memorandum and Articles of Association of Bolingo Hotels and Towers for his removal in office.
The day after they obtained an order on June 11, 2009 to hold the Board meeting of the Hotels, Cyprian was said to have influenced some officers in the CAC to place a caveat on the file of the Hotels with the CAC for preventing his siblings who are all directors from removing him from office.

Upon this, Bolingo Hotels and Cyprian dragged Chuma Igweh, Eyinnaya Igweh, Chijioke Igweh and Corporate Affairs Commission before the Federal High Court,Abuja in the suit where he contended that the other Directors are no longer Directors because they had not paid for the shares allotted to them by virtue of the unilateral call on shares made by him and that the shares of their late father belonged to him.

However, our source disclosed that the children filed their defence and counter-claim against Bolingo Hotels and Towers Limited, Cyprian Okechukwu Igweh and Corporate Affairs Commission, where they also made their claims and reliefs to the effect that the shares of their late father in Bolingo Hotels had not been transmitted to Cyprian, despite his claims.

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