Olayemi Cardoso, Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, and Salam-Alada Kofo, Director of Legal Services of the CBN, have been charged with contempt of court in the Federal High Court in Abuja for allegedly failing to properly comply with a Supreme Court decision.
Melrose General Services filed a contempt suit (FHC/ABJ/CS/532/2025) against Cardoso, Kofo, the CBN, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, and the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of Economy, Wale Edun.
The applicant claims that the respondents failed to release N220m, despite the Supreme Court’s decision to reverse the forfeiture.
Chronicle NG gathered that the suit stems from the controversial Paris Club refund, which involved payments to consultants who rendered services to the Nigerian Governors’ Forum.
In June 2024, the Supreme Court overturned a forfeiture order against Melrose General Services Limited.
The court ordered the release of frozen funds, including N1.22 billion in Melrose’s bank account and N220 million transferred to Wasp Networks and Thebe Wellness as loans and investments.
The court ruled that the EFCC failed to prove the funds were proceeds of fraud and ordered the full amounts to be released to the rightful owners.
Through its attorney, Chikaosolu Ojukwu, SAN, Melrose contended that the refusal to comply with the court’s decision constituted contempt of court.
The firm claims that the partial cooperation undermines the authority of the Supreme Court.
The CBN’s legal team, led by Abdulfatai Oyedele, argued that the Supreme Court ordered payment of N220m to Wasp Network Limited and Thebe Wellness Services, not Melrose.
They also stated that Wasp Network requested N200m and Thebe Wellness had yet to claim N20m.
The EFCC, represented by M.A. Babatunde, filed a petition for misjoinder, saying it should not be a party to the case.
Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court in Abuja will start hearing the case on June 4, 2025.
