Former President of Athletics Federation of Nigeria, Solomon Ogba has reacted to the debt of N513,534,765.76 which led to Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) dragging him before a Federal High Court in Lagos.

In a statement of defence and counter-claim accompanied with defendants witness on oath sworn to by him and filed before the court by a lawyer, Barrister Victor Obaro, the defendants while denying almost all the claims of AMCON, stated that at no point in time did they approach the defunct Oceanic Bank International Plc for credit facilities nor was there any credit facility granted Cleofas Company as alleged by AMCON.

The defendants alleged further that the purported letter dated 29th of March 2007 purportedly applying to the bank for a margin facility of N320 million did not emanate from Cleofas Company rather, Cleofas Company opened a margin account with Oceanic Capital Assets Management Ltd on the 3rd of May, 2006 with the sum of N30 million for the purchase and sale of shares to be managed by Oceanic Capital, being an assets management company.

Between the period of May 2006 when Cleofas margin account was opened and shares were purchased and sold for the company by Oceanic Capital running into millions of naira.

On 7th of May, 2007 on the professional advice of Oceanic Capital, Cleofas obtained a margin loan of N50 million from Oceanic Capital Assets management to acquire shares of International Energy Insurance Plc and GTBank Plc.

Thereafter Oceanic Capital who managed the Cleofas Company continued to unilaterally invest funds in the Cleofas margin account to buy and sell shares based on their professional skills and knowledge of the stock market and to recover the N50 million loan facility from the sale of the shares.

Oceanic Capital was alleged to have purchased some shares for Cleofas Company and fraudulently converted and appropriated the shares to itself but on becoming aware of the unprofessional conduct, Cleofas Company protested the conversion of its share by the Oceanic Capital and its management staff.

It was further stated that Cleofas Company by its letter dated 16th January, 2020 instructed Oceanic capital to liquidate facility from the proceeds of the sales to liquidate share.

Consequently, the defendants counter-claim are as follows: An order directing AMCON to return the share of the defendant in custody of AMCON and that the court should award damages in their favour.