By John Dike, Osogbo
The Federal High Court in Abuja has scheduled September 29, 2025, to hear a motion filed by Osun State Governmentt overnment challenging the court’s jurisdiction over a suit concerning the withheld Local Government funds.
Osun insists that the case, which was initially before the Osogbo division of the court, should be returned there for proper hearing following the end of the court’s vacation on September 16.
The motion, led by Senior Advocate Musibau Adetumbi, SAN, contends that the Attorney General of the Federation’s (AGF) fiat authorizing the Abuja court to hear the matter is no longer valid due to the court’s vacation ending.
Further, the motion questions the authenticity of a letter from the Chief Judge’s office, which appointed Justice Emeka Nwite to hear the case in Abuja. Adetumbi argued that the letter was signed by an unrecognized personal assistant to the Chief Judge, casting doubt on its legitimacy. He urged the court to resolve this issue before proceeding.
Opposing the motion, counsel for the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Dr. Muritala Abdulrasheed, SAN, and the Accountant General of the Federation (AGF), Alhaji Tajudeen Oladoja, SAN, alleged that the motion is a delay tactic, stressing the urgency as the tenure of the APC-elected Local Government Chairmen and Councillors expires on October 22.
Justice Nwite ruled that the September 29 hearing will focus first on the jurisdictional application before addressing the substantive matters.
In a related development, the court struck out the AGF as the third defendant following the plaintiff’s discontinuation of the suit against him, citing another pending Supreme Court case involving the AGF.
The suit, filed by Osun State Attorney General Oluwole Jimi-Bada, seeks to restrain the CBN and the Accountant General from opening and maintaining accounts for APC-elected Local Government Chairmen from the 2022 elections. The state government claims that these Chairmen were legally removed by the Federal High Court and the Court of Appeal, and thus should not have access to government funds.
