Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court, Abuja, has fixed September 29 for hearing a motion filed by the Osun State Government, challenging the court’s jurisdiction to entertain a suit involving withheld local government (LG) funds.
At Monday’s resumed session, the Osun State Government, through its lead counsel Musibau Adetunbi, SAN, argued that the case should be transferred back to the Osogbo Division of the court, as the judicial vacation officially ended on September 16.
Adetunbi’s motion raised two key jurisdictional concerns:
- That the authorization granted to the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) for the matter to be heard in Abuja during court vacation has lapsed.
- That a controversial letter allegedly from the Chief Judge’s office, assigning the case to Justice Nwite, is of questionable validity.
The defence counsel criticized the letter for being signed by an individual described only as a “Personal Assistant to the Personal Assistant” of the Chief Judge—someone he described as a “busybody” with no legal authority to issue such a directive.
“The integrity of the letter is in doubt, and the court should first determine its validity before moving forward with the substantive matter,” Adetunbi told the court.
CBN, Accountant-General Accuse Osun Govt of Delay Tactics
Opposing the motion, senior lawyers for the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Muritala Abdulrasheed, SAN, and the Accountant General of the Federation (AGF), Tajudeen Oladoja, SAN, claimed the state government’s application was merely a delay tactic aimed at stalling the case.
They argued that the matter was time-sensitive, noting that the tenure of the APC-elected local government Chairmen and Councillors—the central figures in the suit—would expire on October 22, rendering the case “academic” if not promptly decided.
After hearing arguments from both sides, Justice Nwite ruled that the jurisdictional issues raised by the Osun State Government must be addressed first. The judge scheduled September 29 for hearing the motion on jurisdiction and any other preliminary applications before any substantive hearing.
In an earlier development, the court struck out the name of the Attorney General of the Federation, who had been listed as the 3rd defendant, following the plaintiff’s notice of discontinuance. Counsel for the Osun State Government explained that a separate suit involving the AGF is currently pending before the Supreme Court.
Background: Osun Govt Seeks to Block Funds to APC-Elected LG Chairmen
The original suit was filed by Osun State Attorney General, Oluwole Jimi-Bada, on behalf of the state government. It seeks to restrain the CBN and the Accountant General of the Federation from:
- Opening or operating local government accounts for APC-elected Chairmen and Councillors.
- Disbursing statutory allocations to the said officials, whom the Federal High Court and Court of Appeal have declared sacked.
The disputed Chairmen were elected in a controversial October 2022 election reportedly featuring only APC candidates.
The state government argues that continuing to allocate or manage funds for these officials would violate subsisting judgments of the court.
