A Federal High Court has dismissed a suit challenging non-registration of a same sex group by the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), for lacking in merit.
Justice Nnamdi Dimgba of the Abuja division of the court in his judgment, last Friday, held that the decision of CAC refusing to register the group was in compliance with 30 (1) (c) of the Companies
And Allied Matters Act (CAMA) Cap C20 Laws of Federation of Nigeria 2004.
“It is my view that where either the proposed name of the company or its aims and objectives are caught by the provisions of Section 30 (1) (c) of CAMA, the respondent is duly empowered to reject such an application for reservation of name or registration as it has done in this case.
“Section 30 (1) (c) of CAMA reads: “No company shall be registered under this Act by a name which- (c) in the opinion of the Commission is capable of being misleading as to the nature or extent of its activities or is undesirable, offensive or otherwise contrary to public policy.”
The Applicant, Pamela Adie, had, sometime in October 2017, founded “Lesbian Equality and Empowerment Initiatives” whose objective was primarily to advocate for the rights of same sex sexual orientation people.
In her quest to register the association, she applied to the CAC, through her counsel, Fajenyo Kayode, for the reservation of the name.
However, the Commission declined to approve the proposed name on the ground that it was misleading and contrary to public policy.
-SUN-
