United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc has asked the Federal High Court to commit nine individuals linked to Western Metal Products Company (WEMPCO) to prison over alleged disobedience of a court order appointing a receiver-manager over assets connected to the industrial group, escalating its efforts to recover ₦61.45 billion it says is owed by the conglomerate.
The committal application accuses the respondents of “wilful, deliberate and orchestrated disobedience” of an April 2 court order and seeks their detention until they comply with the directives. The allegations have not been tested in court, and WEMPCO’s response was not immediately available.
The notice was published in The Nation on Tuesday, October 27, following an order permitting service by newspaper, in the latest development in a dispute that raises questions about the enforcement of receivership orders and lenders’ ability to recover distressed exposures from large industrial borrowers.
The individuals named in the application are Lewis Shui Noor Tung, Phillip Shui Che Tung, Alhaji M.A. Ola Yusuf, Tung Lawrence Blake, Alli Aare Hadji Tokunbo, Paul Shui Po Tung, Robert Tung, CL Ip and Taiwo Alli. The notice lists their address as 18 Wempco Road, Ogba, Ikeja, Lagos.
Among the respondents, Alli is managing director of Nigerian Enamelware Company Plc, a company listed on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) and one of the 17 corporate defendants in the underlying proceedings. Robert Tung also sits on its board.
The dispute centres on an April 2 order by Justice Akintayo Aluko, which froze funds of up to ₦61.45 billion linked to WEMPCO and associated defendants across 27 banks and fintech platforms. The judge also appointed Romeo Ese Michael as receiver-manager over assets not already pledged under a 2019 credit agreement.
The order requires banks and fintech operators, including Moniepoint, OPay and Kuda, to disclose and hold balances belonging to the defendants. The receiver-manager’s powers also extend to two Wärtsilä power generators, wherever they may be found.
UBA’s latest application alleges that the receiver-manager encountered resistance after court bailiffs handed over the group’s Magboro/Ibafo plant in Ogun State.
According to the bank’s affidavit, the respondents allegedly brought in individuals described as thugs, broke the receiver’s locks and threatened his staff with “serious injury.” The bank further alleges that the respondents continued operating the business and diverting its funds despite the receivership order.
UBA maintains that the plant has remained under the respondents’ control since the alleged confrontation, preventing the receiver-manager from exercising the authority granted by the court.
The committal application seeks to compel compliance with the April 2 directives, making the proceedings a significant test of how effectively court-appointed receivers can secure control of assets when borrowers or persons associated with them allegedly resist enforcement.
Court documents also indicate that attempts to negotiate a settlement between the bank and WEMPCO failed to produce an agreed repayment framework.
On June 22, WEMPCO’s lawyers at SimmonsCooper Partners, led by Dapo Akinosun, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), wrote to UBA seeking an urgent meeting. They proposed an interim standstill, a joint reconciliation of the accounts and a structured framework for repayment.
UBA’s lawyer, Temilolu Adamolekun, also a SAN, responded the following day, questioning how a company allegedly resorting to physical violence and self-help could simultaneously seek dialogue. He nevertheless agreed to meet with the company’s representatives.
The parties subsequently met at UBA’s Marina head office on June 26 and agreed to conduct a joint inspection of the Magboro facility on July 2.
According to UBA’s affidavit, WEMPCO and its lawyers failed to attend the scheduled inspection and had since “gone incommunicado.” The bank says the facility has remained under the respondents’ control.
The WEMPCO action follows an earlier recovery development involving Stallion Group, for which UBA secured a judgment on October 16 using the same receiver-manager, according to MoneyCentral, which first reported the WEMPCO proceedings on that date.
The other corporate defendants in the WEMPCO case include Lagos Oriental Hotel Ltd., United Rolling Mills Ltd., Wempco Steel Mill Co. and Prime Nigeria Tiles Co., among the 17 companies named in the underlying proceedings.
WEMPCO was founded by K.F. Tung, who first arrived in Nigeria in 1967, and has interests associated with the country’s industrial and manufacturing sectors.
The proceedings remain unresolved, with UBA seeking to enforce the April 2 order and recover the funds it says are owed. The court’s eventual determination will establish the legal consequences, if any, of the alleged interference with the receiver-manager’s mandate.
