The management of Guaranty Trust Bank, GTBank has reacted to claims that indigenous auto firm, Innoson Group of companies, had absolved the bank.
The auto company had on Friday, announced taking over the bank via a writ of FiFA it obtained at the Supreme Court judgement over the bank’s indebtedness to the company to the tune of N8.7 billion The company reportedly sealed off two branches of the bank in execution of the judgement.
Reacting to this, the bank maintains that the issue it had in contention with the manufacturing conglomerate was with an account of Nigeria Custom Service domiciled with the bank and not against GT bank as an entity.
The Bank’s Secretary, Erhi Obebeduo in a statement released says “The attention of Guaranty Trust Bank Plc. has been drawn to statements circulating in the news and social media. It is important to state that the judgment allegedly in issue, is in respect of garnishee proceedings against the account of the Nigerian Custom Service board domiciled with the bank and not against the bank as an entity”, he stated.
Guarantee Trust Bank says it is taking all necessary legal steps to ensure that Innoson motors, with which it has had a long-drawn-out court case, carry out no illegal or fraudulent execution.
On Friday, Innoson Nigeria Limited had announced that it obtained a writ of Fifa from the Federal High Court in Awka, Anambra State, against GTB to effect the judgment given by the Federal High Court in Ibadan and upheld by the Supreme Court of Nigeria.
Cornel Osigwe, the Head of Corporate Communication of Innoson, made the announcement, saying: “The Chairman of Innoson Group, Chief Dr. Innocent Chukwuma, OFR has through a Writ of FiFa, taken over Guaranty Trust Bank PLC for and on behalf of Innoson Nigeria Ltd as a result of the bank’s indebtedness to Innoson Nigeria Ltd. In a landmark decision on February 27th 2019, the Supreme Court of Nigeria dismissed GTB’s appeal — SC.
694/2014 — against the judgment of Court of Appeal, Ibadan Division.” “We have taken over GTBank in Awka and Nnewi,” Osigwe subsequently announced”.