Court finds Sterling Bank guilty for breach of contract, awards damages
Maureen Aguta
Justice Olumuyiwa Martins of a Lagos High Court has awarded N75 million damages against Sterling Bank Plc, over a breach of the non-disclosure and non-circumvention agreement it had with Comfort Stevens Nigeria Limited and its Chief Executive Officer, CEO, Dr. John Nwankwo.
The court said N50 million was for damages, while N25 million serves as the cost of the action by the claimants.
The claimants are Comfort Stevens Nigeria Limited and Dr. Nwankwo.
Justice Martins held that the defendant’s conduct in circumventing the Confidentiality Deed dated September 16, 2019, and the Non-Disclosure and Non-Circumvention Agreement dated October 3, 2019, by engaging in the same project it had with the claimants with a third party without the consent and full disclosure to the claimants, is wrongful and unlawful, resulting in a material violation of the agreement’s terms and conditions.
She declared: “The breach of the confidentiality deed dated September 16, 2019, and the non-disclosure and non-circumvention agreement dated October 3, 2019, is deemed unlawful and unjustifiable.
“An order of perpetual injunction is granted in favour of the claimants to prevent the defendant, its personnel, and agents from directly or indirectly committing or engaging in any act prohibited by the terms and conditions of the non-disclosure and non-circumvention agreement dated October 3, 2019.
“The sum of N50 million is awarded as damages for breach of the non-disclosure and non-circumvention agreement dated October 3, 2019, in favour of the claimants.”
“The sum of N25 million is awarded as the costs of this action in favour of the claimants. This is the Judgment of the court.”
The claimants had sought to embark on a N10.5 billion footwear and shoe component technology and automated project in Aba.
“We will not accept anyone taking any action, for whatever reason to want to push for any change of government.
“Democracy is what we stand for, democracy is what we will continue to defend,” he said.
The CDS said he had earlier stated that the military would step in if the protests got out of hand.
“You can see that some subversive elements are pushing individuals to carry Russian flags in Nigeria; that is crossing the red line, and we will not accept that.
President Tinubu had in a national broadcast yesterday pleaded with the organisers of the nationwide protest to suspend the action as it had gone violent in some states with the attendant loss of lives and destruction of property.
He also warned that he would not sit and watch some people used by opposition politicians to truncate democracy in the country.
The meeting was attended by all the service chiefs, Vice President Kashim Shetima, Mr Nuhu Ribadu, National Security Adviser, and Kayode Egbetokun, Inspector-General of Police, among others.