Court awards Hesmor N6.2bn damages against NIMASA
Written by Bosede Olusola-Obasa
The
Federal High Court in Lagos has ordered the Nigerian Maritime
Administration and Safety Agency to pay N6.2bn as damages to Hensmor
Nigeria Ltd, a company owned by Pricnce Henry Omorodion
In
a copy of the judgement delivered by Justice O.E. Abang on December
2, and made available to our correspondent on Friday, the plaintiff,
Hensmor Nig. Ltd., had instituted an action joining Dominic Alim, an
engineer, as the second defendant.
Hensmor
had gone to court to challenge the detention order reference
NMA/APP/006/01 affecting Vessel M.T. Agbonmien, which bore 63million
metric tonnes of kerosene.
The
ship was said to have been detained indefinitely on the grounds of
‘unseaworthiness,’ resulting in the subsequent theft of the
product valued at N5.02m in 2007.
The
judge said, "Where a public officer as in this case acted in bad
faith, for instance, declaring the vessel as unseaworthy when in fact
it was not, but however detained it to pave the way for the second
defendant, habour master and the captain of the vessel to illegally
dispose the plaintiff’s product was an act done outside the
confines of the second defendant’s office.
"I
hereby make an order directing the defendants to pay the plaintiff
the sum of $25m being the estimated value of Vessel M.T, Agbonmien.
"There
is unchallenged evidence before me that since the unlawful detention,
the vessel has become moribund and unserviceable
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