The Nigerian Federal Government and the governors of the country’s 36 states have started intense legal battles at the Supreme Court.
This conflict arises from the Federal Government’s attempt to grant independence to the 774 local governments in Nigeria.
The Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi SAN, is heading the Federal Government’s legal team against the state governors, who are represented by various lawyers.
To address the issues at hand, a seven-member panel of Supreme Court Justices, led by Justice Garba Lawal, has begun hearing the case.
Two prominent lawyers, Yusuf Olaolu Ali and Sebastien Hon, both Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs), have offered their services for free to assist the Federal Government in this complex legal battle.
In the case identified as SC/CV/343/2024, the AGF is asking the Supreme Court for an order to stop state governors from unilaterally, arbitrarily, and unlawfully dissolving democratically elected local government leaders.
In the originating summons he personally signed, the Chief Law Officer of the Federation is also asking the Supreme Court for an order allowing funds allocated to local governments to be directly sent to them from the Federation Account, as per the Constitution, instead of the alleged unlawful joint accounts set up by the governors.
He is also requesting an order from the Supreme Court to stop governors from creating Caretaker Committees to manage local governments, which goes against the Constitutionally guaranteed democratic system.
Additionally, the Federal Government has applied for an injunction to prevent the governors, their agents, and associates from receiving, spending, or interfering with funds from the Federation Account meant for local governments when no democratically elected local government system is in place in the states.
Get instant and latest news updates via Our WhatsApp Community or Google News online channel.