Oba Otudeko, the former Chairman of First Bank has been ordered to appear in court to defend himself on the allegation that he alongside other directors of the bank abused their positions by granting N30 billion to themselves and their proxies while they held sway.
Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke of the Federal high court in Lagos issued the order on Monday against the former FBN Chairman.
Otudeko is currently enmeshed in an insider loan abuse saga with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC which has dragged him before the federal high court presided over by Justice Aneke.
The EFCC had had filed a 13-count charge against Otudeko and three other alleged accomplices over the multi-billion loan.
This followed the confession of a witness, Adesuwa Ezenwa who in August 2024, claimed that Otudeko and his accomplices awarded N30 billion to themselves and companies where they have interests. Ezenwa was a former Relationship Manager with the bank.
Apart from the former FBN Chairman, other alleged accomplices include Stephen Olabisi Onasanya, a former group managing director of thecommercial bank; Soji Akintayo, an ex-board member of Honeywell Flour Mills plc; and Anchorage Limited, companies where Otudeko has substantial interests.
They were dragged to court last year by the anti-graft agency, but Otudeko has failed to appear before the judge, questioning the jurisdiction of the court to hear the matter.
But during the resumed hearing on Monday Justice Aneke said that the former chairman of the bank must appear before him and take his ‘plea’ before raising the issue of jurisdiction.
At the hearing of the matter on Monday, the judge said Otudeko must take his plea before an application challenging the court’s jurisdiction on the case can be decided.
The judge has subsequently adjourned the case to May 8 when the Otudeko is expected to appear before the judge.
According to the details of the case filed by the Commission, Otudeko and others were accused of obtaining the loan in tranches of; N12.3 billion, N5.2 billion, N6.2 billion, N6.1 billion, and N1.5 billion—from FBN claiming that the loans were granted to some companies.
Recall that Otudeko was reported to have fled the country in January amid plans by the EFCC to arraign him before the court for the alleged fraud.
He later issues a statement saying he was ready to defend himself to stop his hard earned image from being dragged on the mud, saying he had no power to issue loans because he occupied no executive position in the commercial bank.
In the statement issued by his counsel, Olasumbo Abolaji, the business mogul said he was ready to “aggressively defend his reputation”.
Below, Otudeko statement:
“In light of recent news reports, Dr. Oba Otudeko categorically refutes the claims concerning his role in FBN Holdings and will aggressively defend his reputation.
“Dr Oba Otudeko is a builder and one of Nigeria’s foremost investors and industrialists. He has built directly from scratch and has worked with others to build many of Nigeria’s most successful companies. This includes FBNHoldings, where he served as a director (then Chairman) from 1997 to 2021 and was instrumental in supporting the transformation of the bank from an old generation bank to its current leadership role as a pan-African financial services holding company.
“As of this moment, he has received no official summons, neither has his legal team received any official invitation from relevant authorities. As he has done in the past, Dr Oba Otudeko is always ready and available to assist any government agency with appropriate oversight in the execution of their duties, with the expectation that these affairs will be conducted with the highest standard of professionalism.
“At 81, after 5 decades of contributions to the growth of Nigeria’s economy, Dr Oba Otudeko is now focused on mentoring the next generation of business leaders and contributing to the positive development of society through enterprise.
“He is not interested in serving in an executive capacity in any organization in Nigeria or elsewhere, neither is he interested in serving in a non-executive capacity on any board asides those he currently sits on. This includes any possibility of returning to the board of FBN Holdings Plc, which appears to be the focus of the recent unfortunate news barrage. FBN Holdings, a legacy institution built over 130 years, holds a special place in Dr. Otudeko’s heart. He trusts this strong foundation to guide the institution into the next era of success.
“Dr. Oba Otudeko is confident that the truth will prevail in due course and looks forward to addressing these claims in the appropriate forum.”
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