Shell challenges committal order on managing director
The Shell Petroleum Development Company has challenged the committal order of a High Court of Rivers State on Tuesday sentencing the company’s Managing Director, Osagie Okunbor, and two other senior officers of the company to prison for three months for disobeying a court order.
“We do not accept that SPDC has disobeyed any lawful court order and we have accordingly appealed this judgment,” the company’s spokesperson, Bamidele Odugbesan, said in a statement on Tuesday, adding: “SPDC has utmost respect for the courts and the laws of Nigeria.”
Some members of Bonny Community in Rivers State had asked the court, presided over by Justice George Omeriji, to commit the SPDC officers to prison for disobeying a High Court order of 2008 asking the company to forfeit the land where one of Nigeria’s biggest oil terminals, Bonny Oil Terminal, is located.
“We have appealed against the order and applied to suspend its execution pending the outcome of the appeal,” the SPDC spokesperson said.
Odugbesan explained that the said 2008 judgment was settled between SPDC and the landlord families of the land in 2014.
“An amicable resolution and settlement agreement was signed by the parties in 2014 after which SPDC paid all the rents due on the land up to 2019,” he said.
He cited a paid public notice by the landlord families in the October 24, 2014 edition of the Guardian newspaper acknowledging the settlement with SPDC.
The Bonny Oil Terminal is a critical national asset in which the Federal Government has 55 per cent interest.
It receives crude oil from international and local oil companies through the Trans Niger Pipeline and the Nembe Creek Trunk Line for export.
A Port Harcourt High Court on Tuesday sentenced the managing director of Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC), Osagie Okunbor, and two others to three months in prison with hard labour.
Those sentenced to prison alongside the SPDC boss in contempt proceedings are, Company Secretary and Head of Legal, Nike Oyinlola, as well as Deputy Country Head of Legal/Managing Counsel, Global Litigation, sub-Sahara Africa, Keibi Atemie.
Presiding judge, George Omereji, while delivering judgment in suit No: PHC/1929/218, convicted the Shell officials for disobeying a court order of Justice Margaret Opara of the Rivers State High Court in 2008, asking Shell to forfeit the land where the Bonny Crude Oil Terminal is located.
The land is said to belong to the Jumbo Major House and the Brown House of Finima, both in Bonny, Rivers State.
The families, who are Shell’s landlord in Bonny had gone to court in suit no: PHC/1956/2007, over the tenancy and compensation for the land but then military Government of Rivers State had issued a certificate of occupancy to Shell.
Justice Opara had ordered Shell to forfeit the Bonny Crude Oil Terminal (established in 1962) for violating the terms of tenancy by going behind the landlords to obtain a certificate of occupancy from the Government of Rivers State.
In his ruling on the matter, Justice Omereji dismissed a motion of notice by counsel to Shell and its three officials seeking to set aside the court order of July 25, 2018 that grant leave to the landlords to serve substituted means of notice of consequence of disobedience of court order in the suit upon the oil firm.
After hearing the submissions of Lucius Nwosu (SAN), Emmanuel Asido counsels to the Bonny landlords and Thompson J Okpoko (SAN), counsel to Shell officials, he declared Okunbor, Olafimihan and Atemie’s committal was for refusal to obey the order of Justice Opara to forfeit the Bonny terminal to the landlords.