On Tuesday, 13th October 2020, the Federal
High Court, delivered a ruling, setting aside the Garnishee Order Nisi made
against the Central Bank of Nigeria in Suit No: FHC/ABJ/CS/563/2020 between Bendu
Peter Services Nigeria Limited & Anor V. Guaranty Trust Bank Plc & Anor.
Bendu Peters Services Nigeria Limited, instituted a
suit before the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, challenging
the actions of the Guaranty Trust Bank in freezing, suspending and refusing to
allow cash withdrawal from her account when requested.
On the 23rd of March 2020, the High Court
delivered its judgment and amongst the declaratory reliefs and, consequential
orders granted in favour of the Plaintiff, the court also awarded a judgment
sum of N24,282,017,249.00 (Twenty-Four Billion, Two Hundred and Eighty-Two
Million, Seventeen Thousand, Two Hundred and Forty-Nine Naira) against Guaranty
Trust Bank.
In a bid to reap the fruits of the judgment gotten at
the High Court, Bendu Peters Services Nigeria Limited, instituted garnishee proceedings
at the Federal High Court, Abuja and sought for the immediate attachment of the
sum belonging to Guaranty Trust Bank Plc in the custody of the Central Bank of
Nigeria.
In compliance to the Garnishee Order Nisi, ordering
the Central Bank of Nigeria to appear in court and to disclose by evidence,
reasons why the Order Nisi should not be made absolute against it, in which
circumstance, the counsel to the Central Bank of Nigeria, O. M. Atoyebi, SAN and
other counsel in the matter now before the Federal High Court Abuja, filed all
necessary processes alongside an objection, wherein they also sought the order
of court to set aside the entire proceedings and on the part of the Bank in
particular, counsel sought the order of court to set aside the Order Nisi made
against the Bank.
The court in
considering the application filed before it, held that the failure of the Plaintiff
now Judgment Creditor at the Federal High Court to disclose the pendency of an
application for the stay of execution of the Judgment obtained from the High
Court of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja on the 23rd of March
2020, deprived the court of its jurisdiction to entertain the garnishee
proceedings and on that rationale, the court vacated the Order Nisi made
against the Central Bank of Nigeria and consequently dismissed the action in
its entirety.