The Abuja Division of the Federal High Court on Wednesday restrained the Kogi government from shutting down Dangote Cement PLC in the Obajana area of the state.

The court also stopped the state government from disrupting or suspending the activities of Dangote Coal Mines Ltd and Dangote Industries Ltd in Okaba, Ankpa Local Government Area and Olamaboro Local Government Area, respectively.

Justice Binta Nyako gave the interim order following two ex-parte motions moved by counsel for the companies, Regina Okotie-Eboh.

The Kogi government and Dangote Group had recently locked horns over the ownership of the Obajana cement factory.

On October 13, the state government gave the cement factory at Obajana 48 hours to shut down in honour of the Kogi House of Assembly, which ordered that the company be sealed until the conglomerate furnishes it with the requisite documents demanded by the legislature.

But the companies, in a motion ex-parte with suit number: FHC/ABJ/CS/1876/22, had sued the Kogi House of Assembly, Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Federal Ministry of Mines and Steel Development and Mining Cadastre Office as the first to fourth defendants, respectively.

The applicants in this suit include Dangote Coal Mines Ltd and Dangote Industries Ltd.

Also, in the second motion marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1877/22, all the defendants in the first application, except Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), were listed as defendants.

The two applications, dated October 13 and filed October 14, were filed by Rickey Tarfa, SAN.

When the matter was called, Ms Okotie-Eboh, who appeared for the companies, informed the court of the motions.

The lawyer said the crux of the matter was the restriction of the applicants’ operations and the defendant’s invasion and disruption of the business.

She argued that the closure of the cement factory by the defendants would affect cement production in Nigeria and put thousands of jobs at risk.

Ms Okotie-Eboh alleged that the state’s house of assembly and its commissioner for justice disrupted cement production even though they did not have the power to do so, adding that the commissioner also threatened to invade the company again.

She, therefore, sought an order of the court preserving the res (subject matter) pending the hearing and determination of the substantive suit.

Mr Nyako, who granted the reliefs sought, ordered the applicants to serve the defendants with the motions on notice within 14 days and adjourned the matter until November 21 for a hearing.

Dangote Group prayed for “an order of interim injunction restraining the defendants/respondents or any person purporting to act on their behalf from extending the exercise of the defendants’ oversight functions outside the concurrent and residual legislative list and unto the executive-legislative list of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice.”

It also prayed for an order of interim injunction restraining them or any person purporting to act on their behalf from making any resolution or order, disrupting, suspending or shutting down the facilities or activities of the applicants anywhere in the state in contravention of the provisions of Section 4(2) and item 32 of part 1 second Schedule of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).

Besides, it sought an order of interim injunction restraining them from further giving effect to any resolution, declaration or decision purporting to suspend the activities of the applicants in the state in contravention of the 1999 Constitution.

(NAN)