By Nume Ekeghe
Following the order of Justice C.J. Aneke of the Federal High Court, Lagos division, the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) has taken over assets belonging to Mr. Joshua Abiodun Faleye, the chief promoter of Jabfal Enterprises Limited, over an indebtedness of over N440million.
According to a statement by AMCON, in total compliance to the order and having met all other due processes for an effective enforcement, the corporation before the weekend took effective possession of two properties through its receiver, Benson Reeds Legal Practitioners.
The assets which the government agency took over included properties situate at Plot 9, Block XIV Okuta Elerinla Residential Estate, Akure, Ondo State, and Plot 3, Block IV, Residential Layout, Okuta Elerinda, Akure in Ondo State.
The case between AMCON and Jabfal Enterprises Limited and its promoter has been a protracted litigation issue since the loan was taken during the first and second phases of Eligible Bank Assets (EBAs) purchase from Unity Bank Plc and Intercontinental Bank (now Access Bank Plc) almost 10 years ago.
Since then, AMCON has offered the obligor a good measure of olive branches and explored all avenues to resolve the matter amicably, but the obligor, and his company, Jabfal Enterprises Limited, have remained recalcitrant and unwilling to repay the huge debt to the corporation.
Confirming that AMCON had enforced on the assets in line with the order of the court, Head of Corporate Communications Department, AMCON, Jude Nwauzor, said: “Yes, we enforced on the properties as ordered by the court.”
Providing more insight into the case, Nwauzor said in securing the credit facilities (the term loan and overdraft), the respondents had pledged as securities the properties belonging to Mr. Joshua Abiodun Faleye and executed deeds of legal mortgages in that regard.
According to the statement, sometime in 2010, AMCON, by virtue of a loan purchase and limited service agreement effective on December 31, 2010, was assigned the absolute rights, title, interest, benefits arising and connected with the term loan and overdraft due for the debtors to pay having become due and payable, and they (Jabfal and its promoters) failed, neglected and refused to pay the debt to AMCON.
The AMCON spokesperson said despite their failure to pay the outstanding balance on the term loan and overdraft of N290, 255, 896.77 and N126, 485, 340.27 respectively, the debtors were still in possession of the properties used as collateral for the credit facilities until Justice Aneke’s order, which has made it possible for AMCON to take over the assets.
