Stephen Olufemi Oni, Ilorin
The Court of Appeal, Ilorin division, has struck out a case instituted against the Kwara State Internal Revenue Service (KW-IRS) by Mr. Adeyemi Sanni Sheriff, Mrs. Adedoyin Sanni, and Mr. Bamidele Ogunlowo, trading under the name and style of Mazars Consulting.
It would be recalled that Mazars Consulting, through its Counsel, A. K. Ajibade & Associates, had instituted an action, under the Undefended List Procedure, before Justice E. B. Mohammed of the Kwara state High Court sitting in Ilorin, seeking the recovery of a total sum of N569.7m for an alleged commission on a purported service rendered to the KW-IRS as a Tax Audit Monitoring Agent (TAMA).
The Defendant (KW-IRS) promptly joined issues with the Plaintiffs by filing reasonable grounds for defence, on the grounds that the Plaintiffs have not rendered any service to the state revenue agency that could warrant the payment of such humongous claims being sought by the Plaintiffs (Mazars Consulting).
The Plaintiffs, however, got judgment in their favour against the KW-IRS on 5th November, 2020 in a ruling delivered by Justice Mohammed of the state High Court.
Dissatisfied by the judgment of the State High Court, KW-IRS filed an appeal at the Court of Appeal, Ilorin Division, while also filing and moving a motion for the stay of execution of the said judgment pending the determination of the appeal.
Deciding on the appeal, the Court of Appeal presided over by Justice U. I. Ndukwe-Anyanwu formulated two issues: disclosure or non-joinder of the proper parties before the Court and the propriety or otherwise of not moving the entire claims of the Plaintiffs from the Undefended List Procedure to the General Cause List by the trial Court.
In the end, the appellate Court in a unanimous decision, struck out the entire claims of the Plaintiffs on 10th September, 2021, having resolved the entire issues in favour of the KW-IRS.
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