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Exclusive: THISDAY's Apapa-Lagos Corporate Office Up for Sale
Newsdiaryonline Wed Sep 7,2011
Mr Nduka
Obaigbena:Publisher Thisday
The 35 Creek Road, Apapa, Lagos corporate headquarters of one of
Nigeria’s leading newspaper, THISDAY may have been put up for
sale by the owner, Nduka Obaigbena.
Newsdiaryonline.com
gathered from multiple sources that Obaigbena and his publishing
company, Leaders & Company Limited are under overwhelming
pressure to clear the huge backlog of backbreaking debts
including arrears of staff emoluments and terminal benefits,
which until now were unattended to. A top management
source of the newspaper said that the idea to dispose the prized
asset better known as “Lagoon Front” was a fallout from a recent
legal challenge by a former Editor against the company and Mr.
Obaigbena.
But another source disclosed that the sale of the corporate
headquarters of the newspaper is being forced by its main
bankers, Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank), which the
newspaper’s exposure to it, is said to have topped N8 billion.
The timing of the legal action, another anonymous source
disclosed, has jolted the company and its publisher to its
foundation and is desperate to salvage its reputation.
The proposed sale, according to the source, is part of the
measures by the company and its publisher to stem the heat from
the inquiries by the local and international community over
fiduciary issues.
It was gathered that part of the proceeds of the sale of the 35
Creek Road, Apapa, Lagos corporate office may be deployed to
securing a new
office complex or in the alternative the operations of the
newspaper may be moved to the former JAMB office headquarters in
Ikoyi, which Mr. Obaigbena had purchased during the sale of
government properties.
As part of the face-saving measures, THISDAY has commenced the
payment of arrears to its staff and exit clearance of former
staff several years after their employments were terminated.
Also, the management has set up a task force on debt
verification to verify payment of debts owed to the company’s
creditors.
It was, however, gathered that the sale is not attracting the
desired interest as the activities of fuel tanker and haulage
truck operators may have depreciated the value of property in
that axis.
Meanwhile, trial in the suit instituted by a former Editor,
Nation’s Capital of THISDAY, Mr. Paul Ibe against the
newspaper’s Editor-in-Chief/Chairman, Mr. Obaigbena and its
publishing firm, Leaders
& Company Limited begins on September 26 at the National
Industrial Court of Nigeria, Abuja.
The court had on August
11, 2011 adopted
the positions of
Barrister Noble Ifeme of Trinity Chambers, solicitor to the
plaintiff and Olayinka Adedeji of El-Shaddai Chambers
representing the defendants that hearing in the matter be slated
for September 26, 2011 after the resumption of the courts from
vacation.
Though Mr. Obaigbena and Leaders & Company Limited have affirmed
their commitment to defend the suit via a memorandum of
appearance dated August 3, 2011, they are yet to file any
statement of defence as at the time of this report.
Mr. Ibe had dragged the Editor-in-chief/ Chairman of THISDAY
Newspapers, Mr.Obaigbena and Leaders & Company Limited to court
over alleged non-remittance of his pension and taxes (PAYE) to
the relevant agencies among other allegations.
He has also asked the court to declare that the procedure
adopted by the defendant that led to the termination of his
employment on July 13, 2010 was unlawful, illegal and in bad
faith.
In the suit No. NIC/ABJ/26/2011, Ibe, a former Editor of
THISDAY, The Saturday Newspaper and Nation’s Capital Editor
sought an order “referring any finding of tax evasion,
anti-labour conditions of service and unethical conduct against
the defendants to the EFCC,
Federal Inland Revenue Service, Nigeria Labour Congress and
Nigeria Press Council respectively for investigation and
prosecution.”
In the suit filed at the National Industrial Court of Nigeria
(NIC) Abuja by Barrister Noble Ifeme of Trinity Chambers, Ibe
asked the court to declare that the defendants breached his
terms of contract and that the termination of his employment was
unlawful, illegal and malicious.
Also, Ibe demanded that all monthly deductions made by the
defendant from his salary while working under the employer
without his consent and without remittance to the relevant
authorities are unlawful and illegal.
In the statement of claim, Ibe said that the condition of the
service he was engaged as the former South African Bureau Chief
of THISDAY from 1998-2000 without basic perks of office
incidental to recruitment outside Nigeria is unlawful and
illegal.
Added to Ibe’s demands is a declaration by the court that the
defendant’s persistent alleged refusal to pay the plaintiff all
his entitlements including salary arrears and the declaration of
his office redundant without terminal benefits are illegal and
unlawful.
The complainant wants a court order directing the defendant to
pay him N10 million for alleged deductions on his monthly
salaries while he was in the employment of the defendant; N2
million for unpaid salary arrears; N1 million as payment in lieu
of notice of redundancy/termination of contract of employment;
N21 million as remuneration, office perks and cost of running
THISDAY Newspapers as Bureau Chief in South Africa and N45
million as damages.
In all, Ibe is demanding N100 million as damages from Mr. Nduka
Obaigbena and the publishers of THISDAY Newspapers, Leaders &
Company Limited.
Describing THISDAY conditions of employment as “slavish”, the
former South African Bureau Chief of the newspaper alleged that
these conditions violated Nigeria’s laws and that the court
should refer to any case of illegal deductions without
remittance or tax evasion by
the defendant to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission
(EFCC), Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Nigeria Labour
Congress (NLC) and the Nigeria Press Council (NPC) for
investigation and prosecution.
Attached as proof of evidence in the suit is a letter from FIRS
confirming that Ibe’s details is not on the FIRS data base. The
letter with reference No. FIRS/TOG.HQ/CONF/457Vol.2 dated July
5, 2011 and titled “Re: Request for confirmation of tax
remittance and TIN number” followed Barrister Noble Ifeme’s
letter to FIRS for confirmation of PAYE remittances and TIN
number of Ibe.
Also attached as a proof of evidence is Ibe’s statement of
account of his pension from Stanbic IBTC Pension Managers. The
statement showed that there were no remittances from June 2004
when the PECNOM Act came into existence to June 2007. There were
no remittances to Ibe’s PENCOM account, PEN100253780611 during
the following periods: January-June 2007; October-December 2008;
February and July-December 2009 and none for 2010. But the
remittance of January 2009 was duplicated. There was also no
transfer of Ibe’s cumulative National Social Insurance Trust
Fund (NSITF) deductions to Stanbic IBTC Pension Managers in line
with the PENCOM Act.
However, Ibe’s pay slip showed that pension deductions among
others were made from his salary up to March 2010.
Mr. Ibe’s employment was terminated on July 13, 2010. “Due to
current re-organisation in the company, management has declared
the Office of Editor, Nation’s Capital redundant. Therefore,
(your) services will no longer be required with immediate
effect,” Associate Director, Administration and Human Resources,
‘Gbayode Somuyiwa had informed the
plaintiff in a letter dated July 13, 2010. However, Ibe alleged
in his suit that the termination of his employment was unlawful,
illegal and malicious and that indeed, the office of Editor,
Nation’s Capital continues to exist to date.
But Ibe’s lawyers in a letter dated September 8, 2010 queried
the termination of his employment and demanded for the payment
of his arrears, terminal benefits and refund of all illegal
deductions including those of the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust
Fund (NSITF), PENCOM and PAYE. Several reminders on the subject
from the plaintiff’s lawyer, according to the writ of summons
went unheeded by the defendant. Even a letter to the newspaper
with FIRS attached form “H2” which was supposed to help in
determining the status of Ibe’s PAYE did not get a response.
Meanwhile, in a related development a former Editor of Compass
Newspaper, Mr. Dotun Oladipo has dragged the chief financier of
the newspaper and former Governor of Ogun State, Otunba Gbenga
Daniel and owners of the newspaper, Western Publishing Company
Limited to the EFCC and ICPC for non-remittances of tax among
other things.
It would be recalled that five former staff of Next Newspaper
had also recently dragged the management of Timbuktu Media Ltd,
owners of Next newspaper to the National Industrial Court of
Nigeria for allegedly failing to remit their taxes and pension
to appropriate authorities.
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