9Mobile Ownership Tussle: Businessman, Ismaila Isa, Challenges Lower Court Ruling

A businessman, Alhaji Abubakar Ismaila Isa, has filed a Notice of Appeal challenging the Ruling of Justice Mohammed Umar of the Federal High Court, Abuja delivered on 24th September, 2025.

Isa, in a Suit No.: FHC/ABJ.CS/1971/2024, had sued Seltrix Limited and 8 others with respect to alleged illegal transfer of 43 million ordinary shares of Teleology Nigeria Limited.

‎‎The Notice of Appeal was filed on October 13, 2025 at the Registry of the Federal High Court, Abuja.

The Respondents in the appeal are Seltrix Limited, Hayatu Hassan Hadejia, Teleology Nigeria Limited, Mohammed Edewor, Emerging Markets Telecommunication Services Limited, Corporate Affairs Commission, Nigerian Communications Commission, LH Telecommunication Limited, and Gen. Theophilus Yakubu Danjuma.

‎Justice Umar had struck out Isa’s suit on the ground that he had no locus standi to institute the suit.

Justice Umar held as follows: “I carefully perused the said exhibit to see if the allegation of the Plaintiff is substantiated, I did not find any. Nowhere was there any figure of the 43, 000, 000 million ordinary shares held in trust for the Plaintiff by the 1st Defendant mentioned…”

However, the Appellant faulted the decision of the court in his Notice of Appeal as contained on two principal grounds.

The Appellant questioned the entire Ruling, adding that the court did not consider his Statement of Claim with respect to his claim that there exists trust between him and the 1st Respondent.

He argues that the trial court wrongly considered affidavits supporting the preliminary objection instead of focusing on the Appellant’s Writ of Summons and Statement of Claim before the Court.

‎The Appellant insists that locus standi (the legal standing to sue) should be determined solely from the Writ of Summons and Statement of Claim as per established in Pharmatek Ind. Ltd. vs. Trade Bank Nigeria Plc.

‎Isa, through his legal team led by Mr. Femi Atteh (SAN), argues that the lower court failed to recognise that when locus standi is challenged, all claims in the Statement of Claim should be accepted as correct.

‎The Appellant also raised the ground of improper consideration of substantive issues at preliminary stage.

He contends that the trial Judge incorrectly delved into the substantive issue of trust between the Appellant and the 1st Respondent in his Ruling on the preliminary objection.

According to him, whether a trust existed regarding 43 million shares or not is a substantive issue not to be decided before full trial.

‎The Appellant asserts that the 1st Respondent holds the shares in trust and has breached that trust, establishing the basis for locus standi.

The Appellant relies on Sections 10 and 11 of the Federal High Court Act.

The Appellant states that “The Learned Lower Court Judge erred in determining the issue of Trust as a ground for his finding that the Appellant has no locus standi, owing to his misconception of the principles of Trust and a failure to follow the correct position of the law, which requires the Court to limit itself to the Statement of Claim in determining a preliminary objection on the ground of lack of locus standi”.

“The Appellant in Paragraphs 1, 2, 11 and 12 of his Statement of Claim asserts that the 1st Respondent is a Trustee of the shares held by the 1st Respondent in the capital of the 3rd Respondent and has breached that trust and that assertion amounts to a claim of a beneficial interest in the shares which is the gravamen of this Suit, and thereby discloses the right upon which the locus standi of the Appellant subsists”.

“The locus standi of the Appellant contrary to the finding of the Lower Court rests on the assertion of beneficial interest which is inherent in the principles of trust (which admits of several classes of Trust including-implied, constructive, resulting and express) and which the Court is required by virtue of Sections 10 and 11 of the Federal High Court Act, Cap. F12, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004, to countenance as a ‘Iegal’ right upon which the Appellant’s locus standi rests.”

The Appellant prays the Court of Appeal to allow the appeal and set aside the Ruling of the Federal High Court.

‎He is also praying the Appellate Court to remit the case file to the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court for reassignment to another judge to hear and determine the suit.

‎The Registrar of the Federal High Court has summoned all parties to appear on November 5, 2025 for the settlement of the Record of Appeal at the Federal High Court Headquarters in Abuja.