The Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) has strongly denied allegations of illegally tampering with company records, describing such claims as “false, misleading, and a deliberate act of blackmail.”
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In an official statement issued on Saturday, December 13, 2025, CAC management responded to widespread social media reports captioned: “National Assembly to Probe CAC Registrar for Allegedly Tampering with Abuja Firm, Jonah Capital’s Records.”
The statement, signed by CAC Management, said: “The allegation that the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) illegally tampered with the records of any company is false, misleading, and a deliberate act of blackmail. The era of illegal or arbitrary alteration of company records is long over.”
The Commission cited the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA) 2020, which it said “expressly empowered the Commission to correct, rectify, and regularise records where illegality, falsification, or non-compliance is established, and to do so lawfully, transparently, and in real time.”
“Accordingly, any intervention by the Commission in a company’s records is carried out strictly within the confines of the law, following due process, verifiable documentation, and audit trails. CAC does not act arbitrarily, nor does it benefit from manipulating records,” the statement added.
The Commission maintained that where evidence shows a company record was illegally altered, fraudulently procured, or improperly maintained, it has a statutory duty to correct such anomalies to protect investors, creditors, and the integrity of Nigeria’s corporate registry.
“Baseless allegations aimed at discrediting lawful regulatory actions will not deter the Commission from discharging its mandate. CAC remains committed to transparency, accountability, and the protection of the Nigerian business environment,” the statement concluded.
The CAC’s statement comes amid serious allegations that its Registrar-General, Hussaini Ishaq Magaji, SAN, defied a directive from the Attorney-General of the Federation and unlawfully altered the corporate records of Jonah Capital Nigeria Limited and Houses for Africa Nigeria Limited companies at the center of a multi-billion-naira ownership dispute over Abuja’s River Park Estate.
According to reports by SaharaReporters, the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, had intervened in the River Park Estate crisis by ordering the CAC to temporarily suspend all corporate actions relating to the companies involved, pending a full review of police investigation files.
In a letter dated September 24, 2025, and signed by the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Justice, B.E. Jedy-Agba (Mrs), the AGF’s office formally requested that CAC “place a caveat to preserve the records of Jonah Capital Nigeria Limited (RC:669754) and Houses for Africa Nigeria Limited (RC:729760)” to ensure no further corporate actions are taken while the Attorney-General completes his review and provides legal advice.
The letter, stamped received on September 25, 2025, stated: “The Honourable Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice is currently reviewing the case file received from the Nigeria Police Force concerning allegations of forgery and fraudulent activities as it pertains to Jonah Capital Nigeria Limited and Houses for Africa Nigeria Limited.”
Despite this directive, CAC Registrar-General Magaji allegedly went ahead and altered the ownership structure of both companies on December 8, 2025, expropriating shares from the original investors and reassigning them to rival claimants in the land ownership dispute.
In a strongly worded statement, Kojo Ansah Mensah, CEO of Jonah Capital Nigeria Ltd and one of the Ghanaian investors in the estate, said the Registrar-General “unlawfully altered” the ownership structure despite a court action and the standing directive from the Attorney-General’s office.
Mensah alleged that at a meeting held on December 1, 2025, in the presence of representatives of adverse parties and the Attorney-General’s office, the Ghanaian investors’ lawyers informed Magaji that the matter was sub judice. However, the Registrar-General later claimed in a letter to the AGF that the investors “failed to appear”—an assertion Mensah described as “bizarre and false.”
Following the controversial changes, individuals “newly coronated” as directors Olakitan Ogunmuyiwa and Adeniran Ogunmuyiwa immediately notified banks, including Zenith Bank, to close the companies’ accounts, and wrote to the Minister of the FCT announcing a purported takeover.
“These hurried actions are designed to disrupt the operations of the company,” Mensah stated.
The Attorney-General’s directive came amid intense legal and criminal proceedings tied to allegations of corporate fraud and forgery related to the development and ownership of River Park Estate, Lugbe, Abuja. The Federal Capital Territory High Court had also ordered all parties to maintain the status quo on the disputed land, effectively halting development and transactions on the property while proceedings continue.
The House of Representatives formally received a petition on December 12, 2025, to investigate the alleged unlawful tampering with the corporate records of Jonah Capital Nigeria Ltd and Houses for Africa Nigeria Ltd by the CAC Registrar-General.
The petition was presented to the House by Hon. Muktar Tolani Shagaya from the Ilorin West Federal Constituency of Kwara State during a plenary presided over by Hon. Benjamin Kalu, the Deputy Speaker.
“Mr Speaker, I rise this morning to lay a petition before this Honourable House, signed by Kojo Mensah Ansah. The petition is on the unlawful expropriation of shares, extrajudicial removal of directors, and retrospective invalidation of corporate filings of Jonah Capital Nigeria Ltd and Houses for Africa Nigeria Ltd by the Registrar General of the Corporate Affairs Commission, Mr Hussaini Magaji, SAN. I seek the leave of the House to lay this petition,” Shagaya said.
The Speaker granted leave, and the motion was reportedly adopted by the plenary on December 11, 2025.
The Ghanaian investors have petitioned both the National Assembly and the Attorney-General of the Federation, describing the CAC’s actions as a “dangerous precedent that could enable hostile takeover of foreign-owned companies by government officials.”
According to Mensah, the Attorney-General, through the Solicitor-General, had on September 24, 2025, directed the CAC to place a caveat on the company’s records until the AGF’s office completed its review of forgery allegations made against investors Sir Samuel Jonah KBE, Kojo Mensah, Victor Quainoo, and their Nigerian lawyer Abu Arome, Esq.
Mensah said that despite being served with court originating summons several weeks before December 8, the Registrar-General went ahead to effect the controversial changes.
The case has raised serious questions about regulatory overreach, investor protection, and the sanctity of corporate records in Nigeria’s business environment. While the CAC insists it acted within its statutory powers under CAMA 2020 to correct alleged irregularities, critics argue that the Commission’s actions represent a defiance of explicit directives from the Attorney-General’s office and court orders to maintain the status quo.
The controversy also comes at a sensitive time for the CAC Registrar-General, who is already facing separate allegations of unexplained wealth and potential conflict of interest, including claims of amassing luxury assets disproportionate to his official salary and allegedly lifting court-ordered restrictions on companies linked to Oil Mining Lease (OML) 40.
As investigations continue, stakeholders are calling for transparency and accountability in the resolution of the River Park Estate dispute, with all eyes on the Attorney-General’s office and the National Assembly to see how this high-profile corporate crisis will be resolved.
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