By Peter OBIORA investadvocate

Oct 07 2010 16.08 GMT

Lagos(investadvocate)-Conoil Plc (Conoil) operating in the Petroleum Marketing Sector of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) has reported 13,697 unclaimed dividend by investors of the company worth N50 million.

 

 The list containing unclaimed dividends in the company’s dividend payment No.19 as at Audited Year Ended December 31 2009 was made available to investadvocate by Sterling Registrars Limited, Registrars to the company in Lagos Nigeria.

 

However, this report by the Petroleum Marketing Giants was made in compliance with Section 382 (1) of the Companies and Allied Matters Act, Cap C20, LFN 2004.

 

The document by Sterling Registrars reads thus: “This booklet contains a list of shareholders who are yet to claim their dividends, where shareholders have received dividends after the compilation of this list, the repetition of their names should be ignored.

 

Any shareholder whose name appears on this list is requested to contact the Registrar as soon as possible or any branch of Conoil”

 

As earlier reported by investadvocate, Nigeria’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) had in July 2010 written to Registrars and quoted companies to make available the list of unclaimed dividends in their possession in order to proffer solutions to the issue; before the Nigerian’s National Assembly.

 

Also, it was reported that the current worth of unclaimed dividends by the Nigerian investors is estimated to be between N17.9 billion as at year 2009 and currently in year 2010, reports has it that the figure has risen to about N20 billion.

 

The Chief Olusegun Obasanjo administration had attempted to set up an Unclaimed Dividend Trust Fund through an Executive Bill; but this was stopped by investors who claimed that the trust fund would not be in their benefit.

 

Prior to this time, Sir Sunny Nwosu, The National Coordinator, Independent Shareholders Association of Nigeria (ISAN), had confirmed to investadvocate that the unclaimed dividend bill amendment had passed a second reading at the Nigeria’s House of Assembly and only awaiting public hearing.

 

He had affirmed that the move by the Nigerian House of Assembly to amend the unclaimed dividend bill will discourage entrepreneurship in Nigeria, because Shareholders may lose the funds within a shorter period of time than 12 years, which was the length of time allowed before the dividend becomes status barred.

 

“Some people are trying to reap where they did not sow if the Bill is passed into law” he said.