The Managing Director of United Bank for Africa Plc, Mr Kennedy Uzoka, has been summoned,  by the Federal High Court in Lagos  in respect of  a N347,355,000 debt owed by Zamfara State.

Justice Saliu Saidu, on Thursday, maintained that Uzoka and UBA’s Legal Adviser, Samuel Adikamkwu, must appear before him on February 27, 2019.

A firm, Greenwich Trust Limited, which got ruling against Zamfara State, had sued Uzoka and Adikamkwu for contempt.

The firm accused the bankers of frustrating its effort to recover a debt of N347m with interest from Zamfara State.

The firm had sought to take possession of Zamfara State’s funds in UBA in a bid to recover the N347m owed it by the state.

However, it alleged Uzoka and Adikamkwu of refusing to release Zamfara State’s funds in their possession, contrary to a December 17, 2018 order made by the court.

Greenwich Trust Limited, therefore, seeks contempt proceedings against Uzoka and Adikamkwu, asking the court to jail them for disobeying a court order.

In the Forms 48, which it filed to seek their committal to prison, Greenwich Trust Limited, accused the bankers of “willful, deliberate and orchestrated disobedience to the garnishee order absolute commanding the release of attached judgment sum which is in the custody of the respondent.”

It therefore prayed the court to put the bankers in “prison and/or protective custody at any of the detaining security agencies or at any designated prison/reformatory in Nigeria’s territorial landscape until they purge themselves of the contempt of this honourable court.”

But the bankers filed a preliminary objection, contending that they were not personally served with the contempt application as required by law.

They said, “The Forms 48 and 49 as well as the accompanying processes were not personally served on the alleged contemnors as required by law.