CBN challenges court order to pay Nyame, others pension arrears

By GLORY ABUH-ADEJOH

The Central Bank Nigeria (CBN) has filed a motion on notice, challenging court’s order to pay former Taraba governor, Jolly Nyame, and three others pension arrears in the National Industrial Court, Abuja.

The other judgment creditors in the suit are Uba Ahmadu, Abubakar Armayau and Bilkisu Danboyi.

When the matter was called before Justice Osatohanmwen Obaseki-Osaghae, counsel to CBN, Johannah Titus informed the court that she had two applications for stay of execution before the court.

She then proceeded to seek leave of the court to withdraw an earlier motion dated and filed on May 27 in order to replace it with another filed on Monday.

Edward Erhinure counsel to Nyame and others, however, objected to the application, stating that he had already filed a counter-affidavit to the May 27 application.

Erhinure in addition asked for N1 million costs, claiming that he had spent money to file processes in response to the application Titus was seeking to withdraw.

Confidence Samuel, counsel to the judgment debtor, the Taraba Government informed the court that he was not opposing Titus’ application.

The judge therefore ruled that the CBN’s application dated May 27, was duly struck out

She further directed Titus to move the motion to replace same with the one filed on Monday.

Obaseki-Osaghae also awarded the sum of N100, 000 as cost against CBN to be paid before the next adjourned date.

She concluded by adjourning the matter until Oct.17 for hearing of Monday’s application.

NAN also reports that in addition to the application of stay of execution by CBN, it also filed a notice of appeal contesting the garnishee order delivered by the same court on May 24.

A garnishee order is a judicial proceeding of execution or enforcement of monetary judgment whereby money belonging to a judgment debtor, in the hands or possession of a third party known as the ‘Garnishee’ (usually a bank), is attached or seized by a judgment creditor, the ‘Garnisher’, in satisfaction of a judgment sum or debt.

The court in its ruling made an order absolute in the garnishee proceeding ordering the CBN to pay the judgment creditors.

NAN reports that the judgment creditors had filed the suit against the judgment debtor, the Taraba State Government and CBN, the garnishee debtor, through a garnishee proceeding.

The judgment debtor in response filed an application filed on Jan. 24, seeking for the order of the court to set aside the order nisi, granted in favour of the judgment creditors on Dec. 2, 2021.

NAN also reports that an Order Nisi means an order that will ripen or take effect at some set date in the future, unless the order is rescinded by a court before that date.

CBN on its part had objected to the garnishee proceeding by stating that the court did not have jurisdiction to entertain the proceeding.

NAN added that the garnishee proceeding emanated from a judgment delivered by the same court on July 12, 2019.

In the judgment, the court had ordered the payment of the sum of N151.1 million, being the unpaid pension arrears of the judgment creditors.

The judgment, which was delivered by Justice Sanusi Kado, was for unpaid pension from May, 2013 to Oct. 2015.

The court, in the said judgment, had ordered 10 equal instalment payments, commencing from July 2019, on a monthly basis until the final liquidation of the total sum.

The judgment creditors were paid the sum of N16.3 million as first instalment, but were never paid again until the expiration of the instalments plan in Nov. 2021.

NAN also reports that the judgment creditors, who were former employees of the judgment debtor upon retirement, were paid the sum of N45 million out of their total pension arrears of N196 million. (NAN)