THE Supreme Court has thrown out a case instituted by the Osun State Government seeking to compel the Federal Government to release statutory allocations owed to local government areas in the state.
In a 6–1 majority decision, the court held that the Osun State Attorney-General lacked the legal standing to initiate the suit on behalf of the local governments, which it affirmed are constitutionally recognised bodies capable of pursuing their own legal claims.
The lead judgment, delivered on Friday, December 5, by Mohammed Idris, held that the matter revolved around allegations that the federal government did not remit funds meant for Osun’s local governments from the federation account, adding that since the controversy was strictly between the local government and the federal government, the state Attorney-General had no authority to represent them.
The court also drew a distinction between this case and the AG Abia & others v. AG Federation, in which the Supreme Court ordered that LG allocations be paid directly to councils nationwide.
Idris explained that if local governments in Osun believed their funds were being withheld, they should have approached the court.
However, the judge expressed displeasure at the federal government’s reluctance to fully implement earlier judgment mandating direct disbursement of federal allocations to local governments.
He reminded that the ruling was binding on the federal government , and the government must ensure that allocations due to local governments are sent directly to them without being withheld under any guise.
The ICIR reports that the federal government withheld Osun’s local government allocations earlier in 2025, citing a dispute over council elections.
The federal government, through the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, declared that the local government chairmen elected on the platform of the Peoples’ Democratic Party PDP) were illegal.
According to him, the All Progressives Congress (APC) chairmen elected under former governor Gboyega Oyetola are the legal occupants of the LGAs because their tenure had not expired.
In August 2025, the state government headed to the Supreme Court, where it asked the apex court to compel the federal government to release several months of allocations.
The state government sought an order restraining the AGF, Central Bank of Nigeria, and Accountant General of the Federation from withholding the funds.
The AGF also pressed the Supreme Court for relief against the state.
Mustapha Usman is an investigative journalist with the International Centre for Investigative Reporting. You can easily reach him via: musman@icirnigeria.com. He tweets @UsmanMustapha_M