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By John Azu
Activist Omoyele Sowore and a civil society organisation, Take It Back Movement, have pleaded with the Supreme Court to review its judgement in a $64 million international trade dispute involving a Nigerian firm and bank.
The Supreme Court had, on May 24, 2024, cleared the Zenith Bank Plc of its contractual obligation to the firm, Owigs and Obigs Nigeria Limited, which cost it the contract and destruction of its supplies to China valued at $64 million.
Thus, the movement, which had handed a seven-day ultimatum in a letter to the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), the National Judicial Council (NJC), Zenith Bank Plc, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, and the Inspector-General of Police, is demanding an immediate review and reversal of the Supreme Court judgement in SC/CV/709/2020.
The movement’s letter, signed by its Abuja coordinator, Comrade Andrew Moses, accused Zenith Bank of accepting the role of serving as the confirming bank for Letters of Credit issued by China’s Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) in a solid minerals export transaction valued at $64,107,180 but allegedly failed to honour its obligations after collecting confirmation fees tied to the transaction.
According to the movement, Zenith Bank allegedly introduced illicit and extra-contractual demands, including over $400,000 in unauthorized cash backing, naira-denominated inflows, and profit-sharing arrangements allegedly linked to affiliated entities.
Take It Back Movement claimed that when Owigs and Obigs Nigeria Limited rejected the conditions, the entire international transaction collapsed, while funds entrusted to Zenith Bank allegedly disappeared without proper accountability, leading to default liabilities estimated at $42,961,739.84.
The group described the matter as “a national economic scandal” that allegedly destroyed a Nigerian export business, wiped out jobs, and severely damaged Nigeria’s credibility in global trade and international banking relations.
In separate correspondence addressed to Zenith Bank’s Group Managing Director, Dame Dr. Adaora Umeoji, the movement expressed outrage that the bank reportedly declared over N1 trillion profit after tax for the 2025 financial year while allegedly refusing to settle liabilities arising from the collapsed international trade transaction.
In another statement, the company had explained that the judgement delivered on May 24, 2024, made defences in favour of Zenith Bank when it stated that its action was only negligence and not a breach of the contract that was liable to pay damages, amounted to a miscarriage of justice as the wrongdoer was declared innocent and rewarded, while the victim was held liable.
It further stated that the apex court twisted autonomous contract dispute between confirming bank and seller, misrepresenting confirming bank’s breach as buyer-seller dispute, thereby undermining contract autonomy between their company and the bank, making Nigeria a laughing stock at the international business community.
“By legalizing illegality, the judgment sends a wrong signal that the nation and it’s banks are unsafe for business,” he said.
“This raises a red flag for investors, tarnishes the country’s reputation and sabotages the government’s efforts to rebuild the economy,” the company stated.
According to the company, the court’s judgement showed a “glaring example of how the Nigerian laws have been brazenly disregarded and urinated upon, resulting in a judgment that defies logic and justice, failing to consider the truth.