Reprieve came the way of embattled Oando Plc Group Chief Executive Officer Mr Wale Tinubu and his deputy Mr Omamofe Boyo as a Federal High Court sitting in Lagos has granted them leave to file a motion for a judicial review of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) decision imposing a fine on Tinubu and banning them from being directors of public companies for five years.
Justice Ayokunle Faji granted “an order of certiorari bringing up to the Federal High Court for the purpose of being quashed, the decision of the first respondent (SEC) contained in its letter dated 31st May 2019”.
An order of certiorari is a writ or order by which a higher court reviews a case tried in a lower court or administrative agency.
SEC had on May 31 announced the conclusion of an investigation of Oando and ordered Tinubu and other affected board members to resign.
It barred Tinubu and Boyo from being directors of public companies for a period of five years.
SEC subsequently set up an interim management team headed by Mr Mutiu Sunmonu to oversee Oando’s affairs and to conduct an Extraordinary General Meeting on or before July 1 to appoint new directors to the board, who would subsequently select a management team
But, on June 3, Justice Mojisola Olatoregun granted Tinubu and Ojo’s application for “an order of interim injunction restraining SEC” from acting on the decisions.
In a separation ex-parte application filed through their counsel Olasupo Shasore (SAN), Tinubu and Ojo prayed for an order of certiorari to quash SEC’s purported imposition of N91,125,000 fine on Tinubu.
They sought an order of certiorari to quash SEC’s purported decision to bar them from being appointed as directors of public companies for a period of five years.
They further prayed for an order of certiorari to quash SEC’s purported appointment of an interim management team to be headed by Sunmonu (the second respondent) to oversee Oando’s affairs.
Justice Ayokule Faji, on Tuesday, granted the application as prayed.
A copy of the order was obtained yesterday.
He granted an “order of certiorari bringing up to the Federal High Court for the purpose of being quashed, the decision of the first respondent contained in its letter of 31st May 2019 at Page 6 Paragraph 5 thereof which purported to bar the applicants from being directors of public companies for a period of five years.”
Justice Faji granted an order prohibiting SEC whether by itself or agents from enforcing or seeking to enforce its purported decisions contained in the May 31 letter.
