The Group Managing Director of Energy Group, Barrister Jimoh Ibrahim, has defied a court order on Monday ordering him to cease the stoppage of Daily Newswatch with immediate effect.

Ibrahim and team team of Editors went ahead with the production of the newspaper on Monday night despite the court order.

A Federal High Court in Lagos on Monday quashed the Share Purchase Agreement, which transferred ownership of Newswatch Communications Limited to Ibrahim.

Two minority shareholders – Nuhu Aruwa and Prof. Jubril Aminu – had filed a petition urging the court to nullify the agreement, which transferred ownership of the company to Ibrahim.

The applicants also sought an order restraining the respondents from publishing and selling to the public, Newswatch daily and weekend magazines.

Respondents in the suit are Newswatch Communications Limited, Global Media Mirror Limited, Jimoh Ibrahim, Newswatch Newspapers and the Corporate Affairs Commission.

Delivering judgment in the suit on Monday, Justice Ibrahim Buba upheld all the prayers of the minority shareholders.

The judge also awarded the sum of N15.7 million as damages against Ibrahim and also gave an order stopping further publications of Newswatch Daily.

Buba held that the respondents could not prove that they paid up for the shares as the petitioners gave evidence to show that the second to the third respondents totally failed to pay for the shares of the company.

Shortly after the judgment, Ibrahim and the senior management staff of the newspaper publishing house went into a meeting.

The major consideration at the meeting, it was gathered, was how to approach the judgment, especially with the failure to challenge it or obtain a stay of execution before the close of court business on Monday.

It was learnt that it was eventually agreed among senior editorial staff of the newspaper that one of the major stories in the newspaper should run with the headline: “Court halts Newswatch publications, newspaper appeals ruling.”

The story was eventually titled: “Conflicting judgment, Newswatch heads for Appeal Court.”

This was in spite of the fact that the ruling was yet to be appealed.

http://www.newsday.com.ng/jimoh-ibrahim-defies-court-order-publishes-daily-newswatch/