CBN, OAGF Deny Release Of Withheld Osun LG Funds To APC Members

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) ànd the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation (OAGF) person denied reports of the merchandise of the witheld Osun State Local Government fiscal allocations to the chairmen and councillors elected connected the level of the All Progressives Congress (APC) successful 2022.

The 2 agencies of authorities told a Federal High Court successful Abuja that the claims of the merchandise of the funds to the disputed chairmen and councillors whose tenure would expire connected October 22, were astatine the realms of rumours.

Ciunsel to the Osun State Government, Musibau Adetunbi, SAN, told Justice Emeka Nwite that the funds which is simply a taxable of litigation earlier his tribunal had been amazingly released betwixt Thursday and Friday past week unlawfully to the sacked section authorities chairmen of the APC.

Adetunbi specifically confirmed that inspite of the bid of the tribunal that presumption quo should beryllium maintained pending the solution of the suit connected the fiscal allocation, CBN and OAGF released the withheld wealth done peculiar accounts opened for the disputed Local Government chairmen astatine the United Bank for Africa (UBA).

The elder lawyer, however, said that successful a swift reaction, the Osun State Government approached a High Court of Oyo State and secured a restraining bid against the bank, stopping it from disbursing the money to the APC members.

Adetunbi further told the tribunal that his lawsuit had to attack the Oyo State High Court due to the fact that their counterpart successful Osun State were connected onslaught action.

While admitting that the restraining bid had been served connected the commercialized bank, CBN and OAGF, helium said that helium had nary documentary grounds arsenic astatine the clip of his submissions to beryllium placed earlier the court

In their reactions, Murtala Abdulrasheed and Tajudeen Oladoja, some SANs, and representing CBN and OAGF, respectively, denied that their clients person effected the merchandise of the wealth to the section authorities chairmen elected connected the level of APC arsenic alleged by the plaintiff.

In their abstracted submissions, the 2 elder lawyers, who aligned with themselves, insisted that the accusation by the plaintiff’s counsel remained rumours successful the lack of documentary evidence.

In his question seeking to transportation the proceeding successful the lawsuit to Osogbo, Osun State, the plaintiff’s lawyer said that since the abrogation of the tribunal had lapsed, the suit should beryllium transferred to wherever it was primitively instituted successful the involvement of justice, just proceeding and just play.

Adetunbi insisted that transferring the suit from Osogbo to Abuja during abrogation was successful atrocious religion and questionable due to the fact that determination was nary urgency to warrant specified action.

Specifically, helium said that the missive transferring the lawsuit by the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court gave untenable reasons that each the defendants were based successful Abuja, adding that specified reasons ought not to person travel from the Chief Judge but the defendants.

But, successful vehement opposition, CBN and OAGF argued that the missive transferring the lawsuit from Osogbo to Abuja made it wide that the Abuja tribunal should perceive the suit substantively.

The 2 agencies said that transferring a lawsuit by the Chief Judge, Justice John Tsoho, was an administrative 1 that cannot beryllium challenged by the Osun State Government.

They, therefore, pleaded that the lawsuit beryllium expeditiously determined successful Abuja.

Meanwhile, Justice Nwite has fixed October 16 for ruling connected whether oregon not the suit should beryllium returned to Osogbo, the Osun State capital.