The Osun State Government on Monday intensified its legal battle against the withholding of local government funds, accusing the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court of aligning with the position of the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF).
The matter, which was originally filed at the Federal High Court (FHC) in Osogbo, has now become a subject of controversy following its transfer to Abuja for “expeditious hearing.”
Background to the Case
The suit, filed by the Osun State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Oluwole Jimi-Bada, seeks to restrain the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) from opening accounts for local government chairmen elected under the All Progressives Congress (APC) in 2022.
The state government maintains that the chairmen were already sacked by a subsisting judgment of the Federal High Court in Osogbo.
Earlier this year, the Osogbo court ordered all parties to maintain the status quo and adjourned the case until November 2025.
However, the AGF successfully sought to have the case transferred to Abuja for accelerated hearing during the court’s vacation, a move Osun insists is not in the interest of justice.
Legal Fireworks in Abuja
At Monday’s proceedings before Justice Emeka Nwite, a vacation judge of the Abuja division, counsel to Osun State, Musibau Adetunbi (SAN), filed two motions challenging the jurisdiction of the Abuja court to entertain the matter.
Specifically, the state asked the court to set aside what it described as the “purported fiat” authorising the transfer, allegedly issued at the instance of the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Justice John Tsoho, in a letter dated August 21, 2025, and signed by his Special Assistant, Joshua Ibrahim Aji.
On the other hand, counsel to the Accountant-General of the Federation, Tajudeen Oladoja (SAN), urged the court to proceed with the case during the vacation, warning that any delay could render the matter “an academic exercise.”
After hearing submissions from both sides, Justice Nwite adjourned the case to September 22, 2025, for the hearing of all pending applications.
What Osun Seeks
In its suit, Osun State is asking the court for:
- An interim injunction restraining the CBN and AGF from opening, operating, or maintaining local government accounts in favour of the sacked APC chairmen and councillors.
- An order stopping the disbursement of allocations to the affected officials, who were elected in October 2022 in a contest limited to APC candidates.
The state insists that implementing the AGF’s directive to reopen the accounts would undermine a subsisting judgment and violate due process.
