Lawyers Sue Finance Minister, Attorney-General, CBN Governor Over Alleged Illegal Deductions From Local Government Funds

Two Nigerian lawyers, Onabe Wilfred Ewoh and Fayenengigha Israel Jacob, have taken key government officials and other parties to court over what they allege are illegal deductions from the statutory allocations of Nigeria’s 774 local government councils. Those named in the lawsuit include Finance Minister Wale Edun, Attorney General and Minister of Justice Lateef Fagbemi, the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the leadership of the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON), ALGON President Bello Lawal, and Mathan Nigeria Limited.

The plaintiffs, represented by the legal firm Ejumejowo & Associates, are challenging deductions tied to a purported ₦85.7 billion contract for constructing health centers across the country’s local government areas. According to the plaintiffs, the contract was entered into by ALGON leadership and Mathan Nigeria Limited without the knowledge or approval of the elected officials in the councils, violating constitutional provisions on local government autonomy.

The lawyers contend that the Finance Ministry and the CBN, acting on a request from ALGON, authorized deductions from local government allocations between October 2024 and September 2025 for the unexecuted project. Despite the significant funds involved, no health centers have reportedly been constructed under the agreement.

The plaintiffs are asking the Federal High Court in Abuja to determine the legality of the deductions and are seeking several court orders, including:

• A declaration that the deductions are unlawful without the approval of democratically elected local council officials.
• An injunction restraining the defendants from further deductions or payments related to the project.
• An interlocutory injunction halting payments to Mathan Nigeria Limited pending the case’s resolution.