The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has been petitioned to investigate the Registrar-General of the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), Mr Hussaini Ishaq Magaji, SAN, over allegations of unlawful alteration of corporate records, expropriation of shares and removal of directors linked to companies developing the River Park Estate in Lugbe, Abuja.
The petition, dated December 16, 2025, was submitted to the anti-graft agency by Ghanaian investors operating JonahCapital Nigeria Ltd and Houses For Africa Nigeria Ltd.
In the petition addressed to the ICPC Chairman and obtained by SaharaReporters, the investors said they had “for almost two decades invested in Nigeria,” describing their involvement in the River Park Estate as “substantial foreign direct investment and a long-term commitment to Nigeria’s economy.”
They accused the CAC Registrar-General of the “expropriation of our companies’ shares, removal of duly registered directors, and retrospective invalidation of corporate filings” relating to the two firms.
According to the petition, JonahCapital Nigeria Ltd is the head lessee and developer of River Park Estate, Lugbe, while Houses For Africa Nigeria Ltd serves as its development partner.
The investors alleged that the dispute began in 2023 after they discovered that two former directors were allegedly developing and selling company properties within the estate without authorisation. Several civil suits were subsequently filed at courts in Abuja.
They claimed that instead of defending the cases, the opposing parties made criminal allegations aimed at weakening their court actions, which eventually led to criminal charges before the matter was taken over by the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation. The Attorney General, they said, later directed the police to halt further action.
Fearing interference with their corporate records, the petitioners said they requested the CAC to place a caveat on their files “to preserve the integrity of our records,” a request they said was granted.
However, they alleged that on August 20, 2025, the CAC wrote to them, referencing a report signed by one DCP Akin Fakorede, demanding the expungement of corporate filings covering nearly 15 years.
Despite responding to the letter and instituting a suit at the Federal High Court to preserve the records, the investors said they were shocked to discover on December 8, 2025, that “the entire corporate records of our companies had been cancelled by Mr Magaji, SAN.”
They stated that the action reduced them to minority shareholders in JonahCapital Nigeria Ltd, while their shares in Houses For Africa Nigeria Ltd were “effectively expropriated.”
The petitioners stressed that only three filings were ever in contention and that the matters were already before the Federal High Court. They added that the Registrar-General was served with court processes weeks before the cancellations.
They argued that by unilaterally cancelling filings, altering directorship records and expropriating shareholdings, the CAC Registrar-General exercised powers “the Constitution reserves exclusively for the courts.”
The investors further warned that the actions could destabilise the companies’ banking relationships, undermine ongoing court cases, expose staff to wrongful termination and place the firms in regulatory default, despite having complied with a CAC directive requiring companies with foreign participation to increase their share capital to ₦100 million.
They also alleged that following the changes at the CAC, adverse claimants began writing to the companies’ bankers using unauthorised company letterheads to instruct them to close corporate accounts, and had written to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory seeking recognition as owners of River Park Estate.
The petitioners urged the ICPC to thoroughly investigate the matter, direct the immediate reversal of the administrative actions, restore the companies’ records and consider prosecuting the CAC Registrar-General for alleged abuse of office.
“We trust the Commission to take a decisive stand against corruption and abuse of office by public officers,” the petition concluded.
