Best Western Hotel owner seeks N23bn compensation against AMCON over alleged illegal conversion, damage to property

ARINZE NWAFOR, Lagos

A firm, Suru Worldwide Ventures Limited, has demanded the aggregate sum of N23 billion from the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) over the alleged unlawful continuing disruption of business activities and property damage.

Sure Worldwide Ventures Limited, the owner of the Best Western Hotel, demanded N23 billion in special damages, an additional N5 billion in general damages and N150 million for the cost of initiating the legal action.

The counsel to the Suru Worldwide Ventures Limited, Layi Babatunde, SAN, and David Owoeye, said the firm is demanding the monies in response to the disruption and damage done to Best Western Hotel’s business, personal reputation and standing in the business community.

The firm’s counsel told a court that AMCON engaged in conversion by taking and/ or wrongful interference with the firm’s goods and the unlawful detention thereof.

The firm had sent a pre-action notice to AMCON dated January 11, 2024, titled ‘Claim for damages for wrongful and/ or unlawful conversion of properties and particularly damage to property situate, lying and being at 2, Allen Avenue, Ikeja, Lagos, called Best Western Hotel belonging to Suru Worldwide and for unmitigated losses.’

In the pre-action notice, the counsel informed AMCON of its intention to institute a claim against the corporation if it did not stop the damage to the firm’s properties and start restoring whatever property it had converted within thirty days of the service of their notice.

The notice read in part, “Stop the further dissipation of our client’s properties and further remediate our clients’ losses by restoring their properties (whether movable or immovable) and paying adequate compensation for your acts of impunity within thirty days of the service of this Demand/ Pre-Action notice on you,”

“We shall be left with no alternative than to give effect to our clients’ standing instructions to institute a claim against you before a court of competent jurisdiction for the recovery of the full sum as enumerated above, in addition to interests, other costs and other applicable reliefs in the circumstance.”

The counsel to the firm, Babatunde, SAN, said the court order by which AMCON engaged in the alleged illegal conversion and damage to the property of his clients, Suru Worldwide Ventures Ltd and Mr Edward Akinlade, had been set aside by the Court of Appeal.

He said AMCON had on September 22, 2017, entered the Best Western Hotel under the guise of enforcing a court order in suit no. FHC/VCS/1059/2016: AMCON V. IGP & 3ors which purportedly gave the corporation power to exercise its right as a legal mortgagee under the Deeds of Legal Mortgage.

Babatunde, SAN, noted that AMCON knew that the judgment upon which it carried out its purported execution of a court order had since been set aside by the Court of Appeal.

The firm’s counsel also noted that it is on record that AMCON’s counterclaim for alleged indebtedness of his client in suit no. FHC/UCS/450/11; Suru Worldwide Ventures Ltd v. AMCON & Anor has since been dismissed by the Federal High Court.

He said the dismissal of AMCON’s counterclaim was upheld by the Court of Appeal and is now on appeal to the Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court will deliver a ruling in the civil application on February 16, 2024.

Moreover, the counsel to the firm spoke to the extent of the damage that AMCON’s purported execution of the legal mortgagee court order on September 22, 2017, did to the Best Western Hotel brand.

He said AMCON agents entered the hotel premises at about 4:30 a.m., in the dark hours of the morning, accompanied by heavily armed men, and forcibly took over the hotel.

Babatunde, SAN, said, “Our client claims that [it was in a] brazen manner which you [AMCON] proceeded, in a commando style, to forcibly take over our clients’ property (Best Western Hotel) at No. 12 Allen Avenue, Ikeja, Lagos, at about 4:30 a.m., in the dark hours of the day, thereby unlawfully holding hostage our clients’ guests, staff and other callers.”

“Thereafter unlawfully ejecting our clients, their staff and customers/ occupiers (both international and local customers), thereby bringing our clients’ business to ruin and tainting our clients’ well-established business reputation and brand which they have laboured to build and sustain over several years.”

Babatunde said that AMCON, upon securing an unlawful and forcible possession of the firm’s properties, proceeded to strip the properties of their entire fittings, furniture, lightings, other electronic appliances and power generating sets.

He said, “You [AMCON] have also caused significant structural alterations and dissipation to our client’s property such that the status of our client’s international Four Star Hotel including its operating Best Western Licence has been substantially degraded almost to the point of no return.”