Ahmed Tinubu & Others Dragged To Court Over Alleged Alpha-Beta Fraud

Mr. Oladapo Apara, a consulting partner at Alpha-Beta Consulting LLP, has dragged the firm before the Lagos State High Court, on account of breach of partnership agreement, as well as fraudulent deduction in the financial accounts of the firm.

Also joined as co-defendants in the suit are, Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu (a former governor of Lagos state and national leader of the All Progressive Congress) and Mr. Akin Doherty (the managing partner of Alpha-Beta Consulting LLP) as second and third defendants respectively.

The process which was commenced via a writ of summons with suit number LD/7330GCMW/2020 was taken out by the law firm of Messers John Oloyede & Co., and has the Claimant praying the court for the following;

1) An ORDER compelling an account of all sums due to the claimant from 2010 till date.

2) An ORDER tracing all funds and assets due to the claimant from the inception of the first defendant (Alpha-Beta) till date.

3) An ORDER of specific performance of clause 8 and 11.0 of the partnership agreement that created the 1st defendant by extant partners.

4) An ORDER of payment to the claimant by the defendant, all sums adjudged to be due to the claimant on the submission of accounts.

5) 10% interest on four (4) above.

The case of the plaintiff as set out in the statement of claim, is that sometime in the year 2000, he approached the second defendant (Senator Tinubu) whilst he was still governor, and proposed the business idea of tracking and the computation of the state internally generated revenue, but senator Tinubu had opted to only accept the proposal on the condition that 70% equity interest in the project be assigned to a certain Olumide Ogunmola before he, will approve the project. The plaintiff alleged that this was done as instructed. Having Mr. Dapo Aparaat a point and later Mr. Tunde Badejo, holding 30% of the 70% to be given to Mr Olumide. The trio (Tunde, Olumide, and Oladape) thus constituted the partners of the then Alpha-Beta Consulting Ltd (later changed to Alpha-Beta Consulting LLP). He further alleged that he wasn’t part of the “A” signatories of the account at first, although he is a signatory to the account.

In 2010, the second defendant requested that the company be changed from a limited liability company, to a limited liability partnership in other to shield his involvement in the affairs of the company. Thus birthing Alpha-Beta Consulting LLP (first defendant) with Mr. Olumide as managing partner, until 2014 when the claimant took over. The Claimant discovered a lot of inconsistencies in the financial account of the first defendant, and upon undertaking more review, he received a reprimand from the second defendant to desist from any more review, as well as informing him of his termination as managing partner and back to deputy manager, and a caution on him not to report the activities of first defendant to the EFCC —then led by Ibrahim Magu, as the latter will always protect him (second defendant). And that the second defendant would use the agencies of the Lagos government against him. This idea the claimant rejected, opting not to resign and revert back as the deputy managing partner but would serve as a consultant to the first defendant. Leading to the emergence of the third defendant(Mr. Akin Doherty, who is not a partner) as managing director of the first defendant.

He alluded to the fact that there were changes to the signatories of the first defendant upon his emergence as the managing partner, thereby making him and Mr. Tunde to be the “A” signatories, but since his termination as the managing partner of the first defendant, he has not been consulted for his signature for financial purposes, despite still having the board’s resolution to that effect still operational. Furthermore, The Claimant avers that despite the huge income made by the lst Defendant (over 150 billion Naira) from 2010 to date, Messrs Tunde Badejo and Akin Doherty acting under the direction of the 2nd Defendant breached Clause 8 of the Partnership Agreement and denied the Claimant his share of the profit from the partnership as provided in the Agreement.

Also, the Claimant avers that Messrs Tunde Badejo, Michael Olunride Ogunmola and Akin Doherty have colluded and conspired to run the affairs of the business in a manner designed to bankrupt the first Defendant through suspicious monetary transfers to 3rd parties running into billions of naira contrary to the partnership agreement.

He further accused the first defendant of irregular transactions in its account records, suspicious transfers, continuous and unlawful sabotage of the partnership agreement due to the undue influence of the second defendant, and in violation of the partnership agreement, especially Clauses 8 and 11. The Claimant avers that Mr. Tunde Badejo admitted that the diversion of the first Defendant funds over the years running into bilions of naira into suspicious accounts was done in a “smart” way to shield the 2nd Defendant (Sen. AHMED TINUBU) from public scrutiny and to hide his assets from the Code of Conduct Bureau and the anti-corruption agencies.The claimant avers that after Mr. Tunde Badejo had explained the facts alluded to above to him, it became clear to him that the first Defendant limited liability partnership, in which he holds 30% of the capital was being used for massive corruption purposes including tax evasion, bribery of government officials, diversion of the funds of the first Defendant and money laundering.
The Claimant is expected to call two witnesses and present some documents in furtherance if its case.

Meanwhile, as at the time of this report, a date for hearing is yet to be fixed by the court.