LAGOS — Fidelity Bank Plc and GON-SETEC Nigeria Limited, an engineering consultancy firm, have amicably resolved a dispute arising from the alleged wrongful termination of a consultancy engagement between both parties.
The resolution followed the bank’s payment of an agreed sum to GON-SETEC covering professional fees and damages arising from the termination of the contract.
Representatives of Fidelity Bank and GON-SETEC met at the bank’s headquarters in Lagos on August 13, 2026, for a reconciliation meeting, where the terms of settlement were agreed upon.
In a letter dated August 21, 2026, signed by Oluwatodimu Adeyemi of the Legal Services Division and Adebukunola Siyonbola of the Litigation and Dispute Resolution Group, the bank confirmed the payment to Chief Kola Kuforiji, legal representative of GON-SETEC.
The letter described the payment as covering “the fee for the consultancy services rendered by your client to the bank and in full and final settlement of your client’s claim on the matter.”
The dispute followed an earlier engagement by Fidelity Bank of GON-SETEC to assist the bank in responding to a 72-hour Abatement Notice issued by the Lagos State Waste Water Regulatory Authority.
The engagement was formally communicated to GON-SETEC in a letter dated May 6, 2026.
Under the terms of the engagement, GON-SETEC was expected to review the statutory notice, provide technical and regulatory advice, liaise with the Lagos State Waste Water Management Office on the bank’s behalf, negotiate with regulatory officials to prevent enforcement action and advise the bank on compliance requirements.
The bank had also directed the firm to act urgently to avert possible prosecution, sanctions, closure of its facilities and other regulatory enforcement measures.
GON-SETEC subsequently mobilised resources and commenced work on the assignment.
According to Chief Kola Kuforiji, Principal Partner at Kola Kuforiji Law Office, Lagos, the firm successfully negotiated a two-week extension for the bank from the regulatory authority.
However, in a letter dated July 20, 2026, Chief Kuforiji said his client was regularly updating the bank on its engagements and progress when it discovered that the same assignment had been awarded to another firm.
He subsequently alleged that the action amounted to a breach of the contractual agreement and demonstrated a lack of good faith on the part of the bank.
The matter has, however, now been brought to an end following the reconciliation meeting and the bank’s payment of the agreed settlement sum, which both parties accepted as full and final settlement of the claim.
