Photo File: Osun State Governor Ademola Adeleke

The Osun State Government on Friday filed a notice of withdrawal of the suit it instituted against the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Accountant-General of the Federation (AGF) before the Federal High Court in Abuja.

Counsel to the state government, Musibau Adetumbi (SAN), informed Justice Emeka Nwite that the case had been overtaken by events.

Adetumbi explained that the suit, which was filed to safeguard withheld local government funds, had been defeated since the funds in question had already been moved out of the CBN by the defendants.

“The suit sought to safeguard the withheld local government funds, but between then and now, we are sure that, notwithstanding the pendency of the case and order of status quo, the money was moved out of the CBN,” Adetumbi told the court.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Osun Attorney-General had, on behalf of the state government, sued the CBN, the Accountant-General of the Federation, and the Attorney-General of the Federation in the case.

Justice Nwite had earlier, on September 22, struck out the name of the Attorney-General of the Federation from the suit after the plaintiff discontinued the case against him, as a similar suit was already pending before the Supreme Court.

The case was filed to stop the Federal Government from releasing withheld local government allocations to sacked chairmen and councillors elected during the tenure of former Governor Adegboyega Oyetola.

Adetumbi, citing Order 51 Rule 2 of the Federal High Court Rules, said the notice of discontinuance was properly filed and that any further argument on the matter would amount to an academic exercise.

Lawyers to the CBN and the AGF — Muritala Abdulrasheed (SAN) and Tajudeen Oladoja (SAN), respectively — did not oppose the application for discontinuance of the suit.

However, Abdulrasheed disagreed with the contents of the affidavit of facts attached to the application, describing them as “damaging depositions.”

“The plaintiff should withdraw the affidavit along with the notice of discontinuance because some of the depositions in the affidavit were against persons who were not parties in the matter,” he said, adding that the grounds for the withdrawal were made in bad faith.

Oladoja also did not oppose the withdrawal but faulted the grounds on which the application was filed, arguing that the plaintiff was wrong to claim that the defendants had no competent defence. He asked the court to award a cost of N10 million against the plaintiff for wasting judicial time.

Responding, Adetumbi maintained that a notice of discontinuance under the Federal High Court Rules does not attract cost and that the defendants’ processes were filed out of time.

“They cannot approach the court to ask for cost or to expunge any of the grounds in the notice of discontinuance,” he said.

After hearing all submissions, justice Nwite adjourned the matter until October 29 for ruling on the plaintiff’s application for discontinuance and other applications filed by the defendants.

NAN had earlier reported that Justice Nwite, in a ruling on Thursday, dismissed the preliminary objections raised by the CBN and AGF, holding that the Osun Attorney-General had the legal right (locus standi) to file the suit on behalf of the local government authorities.