The Osun State Government has officially withdrawn its lawsuit against the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Accountant-General of the Federation, Shamsedeen Ogunjimi, concerning the release of local government funds.
The suit aimed to stop the Federal Government from disbursing withheld funds to local government chairmen and councillors elected during the tenure of former Governor Adegboyega Oyetola—officials whose election had been nullified by the court.
Appearing before the Federal High Court, Abuja, on Friday, Osun’s legal counsel, Musibau Adetumbi (SAN), said the suit had become unnecessary since the funds in question had already been released.
“On September 29, 2025, I informed the court our intention was to safeguard the funds. Since then, the money has been withdrawn from the CBN,” Adetumbi stated in a release shared with Saturday PUNCH. He further added that even if the sacked officials had any claim to tenure, it ended on October 16, 2025.
Lawyers representing the defendants, Muritala Abdulrasheed and Tajudeen Oladoja, did not object to the withdrawal but contested some contents of the affidavit submitted by the Osun State Government.
Abdulrasheed argued that parts of the affidavit made serious allegations against individuals not named in the suit and urged the court to strike out paragraphs five to eleven, calling the grounds for withdrawal “in bad faith.”
Oladoja claimed the assertion that the funds had been disbursed was false, pointing out that the Accountant-General hadn’t had the chance to respond. He also demanded N10 million in costs, citing wasted court time and resources.
Adetumbi countered that under Federal High Court rules, a notice of discontinuance does not attract costs, particularly as the defendants hadn’t filed any substantive processes before the court.
Justice Emeka Nwite adjourned proceedings to October 29 for a ruling on the withdrawal and related applications.
𝗙𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝗢𝘂𝗿 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁𝘀𝗔𝗽𝗽 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗹 𝗧𝗼 𝗚𝗲𝘁 𝗟𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗡𝗲𝘄𝘀 𝗔𝘀 𝗜𝘁'𝘀 𝗗𝗿𝗼𝗽!
