A Federal High Court sitting in Kano has dismissed a legal action instituted by the All Progressives Congress (APC), seeking to block statutory federal allocations to the 44 local government councils in Kano State currently led by officials from the New Nigerian People’s Party (NNPP).
The lawsuit, originally filed in November 2024, had APC’s state chairman, Prince Abdullahi Abbas, as the plaintiff, with Aminu Aliyu Tiga listed among the respondents.
The APC challenged the legality of the NNPP-led local government executives, alleging they were not validly elected in accordance with Nigeria’s constitutional provision.
The case roped in several national institutions as co-respondents, including the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the Federal Accounts Allocation Committee (FAAC), Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC), the offices of the Accountant-General and Auditor-General of the Federation, as well as the Ministers of Finance and Justice.
At the heart of APC’s argument was a request for the court to invalidate the tenure of all 44 LG chairpersons, asserting that they were not “democratically elected,” thereby violating Section 7(1) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended). They further urged the court to restrain federal authorities from disbursing any funds to the said councils.
Justice Simon Amobeda, who presided over the matter, ruled on Monday that the suit lacked merit and dismissed it without any prospect of revival.
While the respondents had indicated a willingness to discontinue the matter, Justice Amobeda clarified that any such step must be taken within 14 days of service, citing Order 50 Rules 3, 4, and 5 of the court procedures to back his position.
Earlier in the proceeding, counsel for the applicants, Mr. Sunday Olowomoran—appearing on behalf of the lead lawyer, Abdul Adamu-Fagge, SAN—moved an oral application to withdraw the suit.
“My Lord, this suit was appealed. The appellate court on June 30 said this court lacks jurisdiction to entertain the matter and that the Kano State High Court is the proper court to entertain it,” Olowomoran told the court, requesting it be struck out.
However, other parties to the suit strongly pushed back against the withdrawal, insisting on outright dismissal—and with accompanying costs.
Mr. B. D. Uche and S. G. Ahmad, representing the CBN and RMAFC respectively, objected to the withdrawal and pressed for a dismissal with costs of ₦1 million each for their clients.
Similarly, Tajudeen Abdullahi, counsel to the Attorney-General of the Federation, also demanded a ₦2.5 million cost, stressing that the suit be dismissed, not struck out.
Kano State Government’s legal representative, Bashir Yusuf-Muhammad, called for the application of legal principles and sought a ₦2 billion cost against the plaintiffs.
On his part, the state’s Attorney-General’s lawyer, Sani Mustafa-Dauda, proposed a ₦5m cost to be imposed on the APC.
Kano State Independent Electoral Commission (KANSIEC), through its counsel Ibrahim Wangida, emphasized the impact of the case on the commission’s operations.
“My Lord, KANSIEC has suffered psychological and physical trauma; the office was locked for three months. We have filed processes, services, and printing. We are asking for a cost of ₦2 million,” he said.
The 44 local government councils were represented by Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Eyitayo Fatogun, who referenced Order 50 of the court’s rules in urging dismissal of the suit, attaching a ₦2 million cost.
Mustapha Hussaini, appearing for the 44 local government chairpersons themselves, concluded the round of submissions by requesting a ₦44m cost in total.
Court kicks out APC’s suit stopping funding for Kano’s 44 LGAs
