Get this news at; ngrguardiannews/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=126345:out-of-court-settlement-between-nlng-nimasa-fails-&catid=1:national&Itemid=559 Out Of Court Settlement Between NLNG, NIMASA Fails THE out of court settlement mooted by the Nigeria Liquefied and Natural Gas (NLNG) Limited has hit the rocks as the agency on Friday told a Federal High Court, Lagos that it could not agree on terms with the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA). NLNG and NIMASA had been embroiled in fierce row over the issue of non-payment of certain statutory levies and charges which NIMASA claims are due to it from NLNG. NLNG had on Thursday urged Justice Mohammed Idris of the Federal High Court in Lagos to grant it short adjournment to perfect work on the settlement talks, a development that prompted the court to fix Friday for report of settlement. But when the case came up, counsel to NLNG, Wale Akoni (SAN) told the court that settlement talks had failed, while the defendants proceeded with their pending applications. “It appears to us that NIMASA is bent on stifling our business. NLNG has paid dividends to the Federal Government in billions. “We even offered to continue to pay but they rejected our offer,” Akoni explained. Justice Idris had on June 18 in Suit FHC/L/CS/847/2013 between NLNG and Attorney General of the Federation and Global West Vessels Specialists, granted an ex-parte order restraining the defendants from charging, imposing, demanding or collecting the 3% of gross freight earnings or any other sums further to section 15(a) of NIMASA Act 2007 on all of NLNG’s international inbound or outbound cargo ships owned, contracted or subcontracted by it; an order NIMASA said was against them even though they were not parties to the suit. After Akoni’s submission, counsel to the Federal Government, Fabian Ajogwu (SAN) moved his application seeking to discharge the ex-parte order on the grounds that the order was essentially made against NIMASA, which was not joined as party to the suit. NIMASA therefore filed an application seeking to be joined as a party to the suit. The federal government contended that NIMASA is a body corporate with statutory powers to sue and be sued in its own name and that its non-inclusion as a party was a violation of the principles of fair hearing. Ajogwu added that the fact that the other side was not heard before the order was made was fatal to the case of NLNG, contending that an order cannot be made against a person who is not a party to the suit as it is necessary that such party must be given the opportunity to present its case. Ajogwu added that the dispute that gave rise to the suit was essentially between NLNG and NIMASA, and that the non-inclusion was a deliberate move by NLNG to circumvent the provision of Section 53(2) the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency Act of 2007, which makes it mandatory for an intending plaintiff to give the statutory body a 30-day pre-action notice. “The reliefs granted the Plaintiffs ex-parte are indeed, in form and substance essentially the reliefs being sought in the substantive suit”, Ajogwu said, adding that the Court would not have granted the exparte order if not for the misrepresentation, concealment and non-disclosure of material facts by NLNG. As a result of this development, Justice Idris has fixed July 8 for ruling.
Posted on: Sun, 07 Jul 2013 04:15:37 +0000
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