Ghana escalates River Park Estate crisis to ECOWAS |

A fresh diplomatic and legal dimension has emerged in the protracted River Park Estate crisis in Abuja as Ghana moves to escalate the dispute to the Economic Community of West African States’ (ECOWAS) Court over allegations of misconduct, document falsification, and breach of agreement by Nigerian authorities.

The Chief Executive Officer of Jonah Capital, Kojo Mensah, made this known in an interview programme on Joy TV,

Mensah said his company was taken aback by the actions of Nigeria’s Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), dismissing claims that the firm failed to attend scheduled meetings as false.

He said: “In fact, it came to us as a surprise. 

“The CAC never wrote to us.

“They wrote a letter to the Attorney General, peddling lies that we did not turn up for the meeting.”

Mensah challenged the CAC’s position by citing video evidence publicly shared by its Commissioner.

He said: “The CAC Commissioner is fond of posting videos of his activities. 

“We have a video he personally posted on the CAC’s Instagram page, showing our lawyers in attendance, as well as a representative of the Attorney General at the meeting.”

Mensah further maintained that Jonah Capital’s ownership of River Park Estate is supported by extensive documentation, some dating back to 2012.

He said: “The share certificates have been prepared. 

“Transfer forms were signed by me and are currently with our lawyers in Abuja.”

He referred to an email dated June 27, 2012, allegedly sent to him by one John Tanley Johnson.

According to Mensah, the share certificate, described as “the bedrock of the company,” was emailed on July 4, 2012 by the accountant of Adren Ogunmuirwa, with Ogunmuirwa copied in the correspondence.

“This is the share certificate they sent to us,” he said, adding: “These are among the documents we submitted to the Nigeria Police Force, alongside numerous other records establishing our ownership of the estate.”

He added that the company also possesses FedEx records confirming the transmission of the documents in 2012.

On the possibility of legal action against the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, Mensah said no final decision had been taken, though formal concerns had been raised.

He said: “We have not yet decided whether to sue the FCT Minister for breach or alleged breach of the agreement.

“We were written to after the minister’s pronouncement and asked to preserve the agreement.”

Mensah disclosed that Jonah Capital responded by raising concerns about the termination clause and requesting further engagement.

“We informed the General Counsel that, although we have commenced the exercise requested of us, we have serious issues with the termination clause and have asked for a meeting to engage,” he said.

Meanwhile, Ghana’s High Commissioner to Nigeria, Baba Jamal, confirmed that the dispute has now assumed a regional dimension, with Accra formally involving ECOWAS after earlier attempts at resolution failed.

“This problem started before I assumed office as High Commissioner to Nigeria,” Jamal said, noting that he had participated in earlier meetings where both parties presented their positions.

Alleging the influence of vested interests, he remarked: “What I can make out of all this is that some individuals are trying to assert power to take over things that do not belong to them.”

He explained that Ghana initially exercised restraint to safeguard its strong bilateral relationship with Nigeria.

“We did not want to escalate this matter because we did not want it to affect the excellent relationship between Ghana and Nigeria,” he said, describing the dispute as “a simple business crisis” complicated by “intransigent positions.”

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However, he confirmed that Ghana has now formally escalated the matter to ECOWAS.

“When I assumed office, we properly briefed Accra, which led to an official petition to ECOWAS,” Jamal disclosed.

According to him, ECOWAS officials requested comprehensive documentation, which Ghana is in the process of submitting.

“As I speak, I have signed a letter transmitting the official documentation and details,” he said, adding: “It should reach ECOWAS by tomorrow.”

He expressed hope for an amicable resolution, while confirming that the dispute is now headed to the ECOWAS Court for adjudication.

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