A former Executive Director of Credits at the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON), Mr. Muhammed Jega, on Monday told an Ikeja Special Offences Court that the N76 billion loan owed by Arik Air Ltd. was later classified as non-performing.
Jega made the statement while being cross-examined during the ongoing trial of former AMCON Managing Director, Ahmed Kuru, and four others over alleged fraud involving N76 billion and $31.5 million.
Other defendants in the case include the former Receiver Manager of Arik Air, Kamilu Omokide; the airline’s Chief Executive Officer, Roy Ilegbodu; Union Bank; and Super Bravo Ltd. Union Bank is also facing a separate charge of making false statements to a public officer.
Jega, who had previously testified that Arik’s loan was performing at the time AMCON acquired it under the first phase of the Eligible Bank Asset (EBA) programme, reversed his position at the resumed hearing. He told the court that relevant regulatory bodies had later classified the loan as non-performing.
Under cross-examination by the first defence counsel, Prof. Taiwo Osipitan (SAN), Jega admitted that his earlier testimony was inaccurate. He clarified that AMCON had acquired Arik’s N85 billion debt from Union Bank and Bank PHB and had subsequently extended an additional N11 billion loan to the airline as working capital.
Despite the injection of AMCON funds and additional intervention from the Bank of Industry (BOI), which AMCON guaranteed, Jega said Arik failed to meet its repayment obligations until his departure from the corporation in 2015.
He disclosed that, although he served as Executive Director of Credits and acted with board approval, he never saw the specific loan purchase agreement from Union Bank detailing Arik’s credit history.
Jega said Union Bank had presented all loans as performing, but by the time he left AMCON, the Arik loan had become non-performing. He referenced minutes from a meeting in London between Union Bank and AMCON, noting that those documents were prepared by the bank and later sent to AMCON.
He accused Union Bank of misleading AMCON about the true status of the loans and said it was only after that meeting that discrepancies became apparent. However, he was unable to explain why he failed to escalate the matter to either the AMCON board or the Central Bank of Nigeria.
Under further cross-examination by Mr. Olasupo Sasore (SAN), counsel to Ahmed Kuru, Jega confirmed that the chairman of Arik once approached him to take up a consultancy role with the airline, but the arrangement did not materialize. He said he declined the offer on advice due to the situation at AMCON at the time, and maintained that his relationship with clients was strictly professional.
Justice Mojisola Dada adjourned the case until July 1 for continuation of trial.
