An Oyo State High Court has restrained the United Bank for Africa from paying out any money from accounts opened in the names of the 30 Local Governments in Osun State by the court-sacked All Progressives Congress Local Government Chairmen and councillors.
This was as the Osun State House of Assembly on Monday cautioned commercial banks in the state against granting unauthorised access to allocations belonging to local government areas.
However, the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation on Monday, denied releasing Osun LG allocations the APC LG chairmen.
Last Friday, Osun State government obtained an interim order barring UBA from releasing funds from the bank accounts of the 30 Osun LGs domiciled in UBA.
Justice A.L. Akintola granted the interim injunction following an ex parte application, marked 1/1149/25, taken before him by Osun State’s legal team.
The suit Osun State’s Attorney-General as the claimant/plaintiff while UBA is the sole defendant/respondent.
The plaintiff sought an order of interim injunction “restraining the defendant/respondent from paying and/or causing to be paid all and/or any of that funds which constitute the statutory local government funds of all the 30 Local Governments in Osun State as listed under Osun State in the 1st Schedule, Part 1 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria pending the hearing and determination of the Motion on Notice for an order of interlocutory injunction filed in this case.”
The Osun Attorney-General also sought an order of interim injunction “mandating the defendant/respondent not to release all the said funds mentioned in relief one above and/or any part of it to any person, however, he may be, be it artificial or natural pending the hearing and determination of the Motion on Notice for an order of interlocutory injunction filed in this case.”
Justice Akintola, in his ruling, made the following orders: “Upon reading the motion ex parte and affidavit in support deposed to by Olufemi Akande Ogundun, Male, Christian, Nigerian citizen of Osun State Secretariat, Abere, Osogbo, and after hearing A.A. Abass Esq, counsel for the claimants/applicants, who moved the motion exparte dated 26 September 2025 and filed on the same date for an order of interim injunction in terms. The court then adjudged and ordered as follows:
“Having carefully considered the motion ex-parte together with the supporting affidavit and the exhibits attached on the one hand as well as the written address of counsel and the affidavit of urgency filed along with the motion, this court is satisfied that the claimants/applicants have successfully made out a case for the urgent intervention of this court at this stage as any delay may foist on the claimants/applicants an irreversible harm, injury or situation of helplessness.
“In any event, it is only an interim order that the defendant/respondent will have the opportunity to possibly challenge once the defendant turns up to join issues with the claimants on the motion on notice for an order of interlocutory injunction already filed in this case. Accordingly, the interim orders of injunction sought are hereby granted as prayed, on the claimants/applicants.”
Hearing of the motion on notice for the order of interlocutory injunction was adjourned till 3rd October, 2025.
In a covering letter conveying the court ruling dated 26 September 2025, lead counsel to the state government, Mr Musibau Adetunbi (SAN), informed the bank of its duty to obey the court order.
The letter was addressed to the head office of the bank in Lagos as well as its branch in Osogbo, the state capital.
“Kindly find attached a copy of the interim order granted against your bank in the above-named suit. Kindly be informed that all relevant processes have been duly served on your bank, and your Legal Department has equally been notified of the Order. However, out of an abundance of caution, we believe that you are one of the authorities of the Bank that we should notify.
“The essence of this letter is just to remind you of your duty to comply with the above-stated order, so long as it subsists, and which obviously was made pending the hearing of the motion on notice.
“Kindly note that the above order covers any statutory payment made to your bank for the benefit of the 30 Local Governments in Osun State,” the letter read.
The letter went on to list the 30 contentious bank accounts with their details, even as it added that the order covered all other accounts that may not be expressly listed in the court process.
Similarly, Osun State House of Assembly has cautioned commercial banks in the state against granting unauthorised access to allocations belonging to local government areas.
The warning formed part of the resolutions reached by the Assembly during its sitting on Monday.
In a statement by the Chief Press Secretary to the Speaker, Olamide Tiamiyu, obtained in Osogbo, the lawmakers emphasised that only duly authorised officers under the employment of the Local Government Service Commission are permitted to serve as signatories to local government accounts.
The resolutions stated, “Any attempt by unauthorised persons to access local government funds is unlawful, unconstitutional, and of no legal effect. All commercial and other financial institutions operating in Osun State are directed to comply strictly with this resolution, while government agencies are to ensure close monitoring and enforcement.
“Any violation of this directive will be treated as aiding and abetting financial fraud and will attract full legal consequences under the law. This step is taken in the public interest to safeguard the resources of our local governments, ensure accountability, and guarantee that funds meant for grassroots development are protected from abuse or diversion.”
The Assembly also urged members of the public to remain vigilant and to promptly report any suspected infractions to the appropriate authorities.
Meanwhile, both the CBN and the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation, on Monday, denied releasing Osun funds to the APC.
Both federal agencies told the Federal High Court in Abuja, that claims of such funds being released to the disputed local government officials, whose tenure is due to expire on October 22, were nothing more than rumours.
The denial by the CBN and OAGF came after counsel for the Osun State Government, Musibau Adetunbi, (SAN), informed Justice Emeka Nwite that the disputed funds—which form the subject of litigation before the court—had allegedly been unlawfully released between Thursday and Friday last week to the APC chairmen.
Adetunbi specifically told the court that, despite an extant order that status quo be maintained pending determination of the suit on the disputed allocations, the CBN and OAGF authorised the release of the withheld funds through special accounts purportedly opened for the contested local government chairmen at the United Bank for Africa (UBA).
The senior advocate explained that in a swift reaction, the Osun State Government approached the High Court of Oyo State, where it secured a restraining order against UBA, barring the bank from disbursing the funds to the affected persons.
He further disclosed that the state government resorted to the Oyo State High Court because the judiciary in Osun State had been paralysed by strike action.
While admitting that the restraining order had been served on the bank, the CBN and the OAGF, Adetunbi conceded that, as at the time of his submissions, he had no documentary evidence to tender before the Federal High Court to substantiate his claim.
In their responses, Murtala Abdulrasheed, (SAN), and Tajudeen Oladoja, (SAN) —counsel representing the CBN and OAGF respectively—categorically denied that their clients had released any funds to the APC local government chairmen, as alleged by the plaintiff.
Both senior lawyers, aligning in their submissions, argued that the claims by the plaintiff’s counsel were unfounded, speculative, and amounted to mere rumours in the absence of credible documentary evidence.
Meanwhile, Adetunbi, in a separate motion, urged the court to transfer hearing of the substantive case back to Osogbo, Osun State. He argued that since the vacation period of the Federal High Court had lapsed, the suit ought to return to its original jurisdiction in the interest of justice, fair hearing, and fair play.
He maintained that the transfer of the matter from Osogbo to Abuja during the vacation was done in bad faith and was questionable, since there had been no urgency to justify such a move.
Specifically, he contended that the letter authorising the transfer, signed by the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Justice John Tsoho, cited the presence of all defendants in Abuja as the reason for relocation. He argued that such a justification ought properly to have emanated from the defendants themselves, not from the Chief Judge.
In strong opposition, counsel for the CBN and OAGF countered that the letter from the Chief Judge made it abundantly clear that the Abuja division should hear the matter substantively.
They insisted that the transfer of a case by the Chief Judge is an administrative act which the Osun State Government cannot lawfully challenge.
The two agencies therefore urged the court to proceed with the substantive hearing in Abuja, stressing that the case should be determined expeditiously.
Justice Nwite adjourned the matter to October 16, for ruling on whether or not the suit should be remitted to Osogbo for further proceedings.
