The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Special Investigation Panel has called the Chairman of Titan Trust Bank (TTB), Babatunde Lemo, in connection with the acquisition of Union Bank of Nigeria.
Former CBN deputy governor Lemo was summoned together with two other alleged stockholders, Cornelius Vink and Rahul Savara.
The letter, delivered to Lemo by the investigative team’s head, Jim Obazee, stated that the invited individuals must present themselves to the Department of Force Intelligence “without fail or excuse” on Thursday, December 28, 2023.
The letter, dated December 24, 2023, was signed by DCP Eloho Okpoziakpo, Head of Operations in the Office of the Special Investigator.
“Accordingly, you are hereby invited to come along with Messrs Cornelius Vink and Mr Rahul Savara to meet with the Team of Special Investigators by 2pm on 28th December 2023 at the Department of Force Intelligence opposite Nigeria Police Force Headquarters, Shehu Shagari Way, Garki, Abuja, without fail or excuse,” the letter partly read.
They were asked to come along with all documents to prove their shares in the bank. The letter further read that if the invited parties refuse to attend the meeting and defend the “requested documents”, “it will be construed that they have decided to forfeit their purported shareholdings in TTB and Union Bank of Nigeria”.
Obazee, appointed CBN Special Investigator in July 2023 by President Bola Tinubu, had indicted ex-CBN governor Godwin Emefiele, in his report to the President, saying the ex-bank chief allegedly used proxies to set up two financial institutions.
In December 2021, Union Bank announced that the 104-year-old bank would be taken over by TTB. The new bank which began operations in 2019 formalised the deal six months later with Lemo as the chairman.