A Federal High Court judge in Lagos who yesterday struck out a motion for a perpetual injunction seeking to stop further publication of Newswatch newspapers will still hear the case, News Express has learnt.

Many people believe that Justice Ibrahim Buba’s dismissal of the motion filed by Prof. Jibril Aminu and Alhaji Nuhu Wada Aruda on behalf of minority shareholders of directors of Newswatch Communications Limited means that the defendant, Barrister Jimoh Ibrahim, has won the case. That, however, is not the case.

The true position of things is that Justice Ibrahim Buba, in his ruling, said he would prefer to hear the plaintiff’s case on merit, since all parties to the matter are represented in court, adding that there would be no need for any restraining order,” explains Ibrahim’s counsel …in a statement released yesterday evening in Lagos.

Aminu and Aruda had requested the court to stop further publication of the recently introduced Newswatch newspaper titles pending the determination of the substantive suit. They accused the new management under Dr. Jimoh Ibrahim of systematically working to kill the company’s main product – Newswatch weekly magazine – and replacing it with a daily newspaper, to be published by a newly incorporated company – Newswatch Newspapers Limited – an organisation in which Ibrahim’s company, Global Media Mirror Limited, owns majority shares.

The shareholders, in their main suit brought via a petition, had urged the court to set aside the Shareholders Agreement through which Ibrahim assumed majority shareholding in the company.

They had averred that Ibrahim, the new Chairman of Newswatch Communications Limited, and the company “have not called a general meeting since the said new illegal take-over of the company.”

The court had last Thursday, January 31, assumed jurisdiction to hear the matter, dismissing the defendants’ preliminary objection.

•Photo: Prof. Aminu and another director are challenging Ibrahim’s alleged illegal take-over of Newswatch.