Senator Andy Uba lost possession of some of his vehicles on Tuesday when court officials stormed his Abuja residence to execute a seizure order pronounced by an Abuja High Court over an unsettled N50 million debt owed to Oranto Petroleum Limited.
The court found Senator Andy Uba in breach of a debt agreement entered with Oranto Petroleum over an interest-free, friendly N50 million loan he received, ruling that his argument that the sum was a gift and donation from the owner of the firm, Mr. Arthur Eze, was unsatisfactory.
Oranto Petroleum initiated a lawsuit when it became clear that Senator Uba was unwilling to repay the loan, after disagreeing with its designation as a repayable debt. It was granted a favorable ruling in 2017 when the court found that Senator Uba could not prove that there was no intention to repay.
Mr. Uba, who ran for the Anambra State governorship position in the last cycle, failed to pay, prompting an ex-parte motion being filed by Oranto Petroleum seeking debt recovery at the Abuja High Court.
Senator Uba’s counsel, G.N. Onovo, not only challenged the jurisdiction of the court to hear the case since the transaction was conducted in Abuja, he also accused the company of lacking cogent evidence to show that the sum in question was indeed a loan facility, not a gift as understood and argued by his client.
He was however counted by the plaintiff’s lawyer, Mrs. Ugochi Ohajekwe, who argued that the burden of proof was on Senator Uba to show that there was no intention to repay, citing section 131 (1) of the Evidence Act.
The court favored Oranto Petroleum’s argument and granted a seizure order that was executed on Tuesday, leading to a loss of prized jeeps by Senator Uba.