The Federal Government has allegedly withheld statutory allocations due to local governments in Osun State for the months of February, March, and April 2025. In response, the Osun State Government has instituted a legal action against the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Lateef Fagbemi, at the Supreme Court.
The suit, marked SC/CV/379/2025 and filed by Musibau Adetunbi (SAN) on behalf of the Osun State Attorney General, seeks an order compelling the Federal Government to release the withheld funds and restrain it from further suspending or seizing future allocations.
According to the originating summons dated April 24, 2025, the Osun State Government is asking the court to determine whether the AGF has the constitutional authority to withhold funds from its local councils, despite the existence of democratically elected local government administrations in the state.
Among the issues raised are whether the withholding of funds without justification contravenes sections 7(1) and 162 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), and whether such action threatens the governance and existence of local governments in the state.
The plaintiff seeks several declarations, including:
That the Federal Government lacks the legal authority to withhold LG allocations where elected councils are in place;
That the withholding of March 2025 allocations is unconstitutional and ultra vires;
That continued withholding threatens the viability of local governments in the state;
That Osun State should not be singled out for non-payment pending implementation of a Supreme Court ruling mandating direct LG allocations.
The state is also requesting interim and interlocutory injunctions to restrain further seizures and compel immediate disbursement of the withheld funds.
In an affidavit of urgency sworn by the state’s Commissioner for Finance, Ogungbile Adeola Olusola, the government warned that the prolonged seizure of the funds could paralyze essential services, especially in education and health sectors.
“If the defendant is not urgently restrained, the local councils will be unable to perform their constitutional duties,” the affidavit stated, adding that the state government acted in good faith and in line with constitutional provisions.
The date for hearing has yet to be fixed.
The dispute stems from a political crisis between the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Osun and the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC), which had in February 2025 urged the Federal Government to halt LG allocations, claiming that the Adeleke administration conducted illegal council elections in violation of a Court of Appeal judgment.
The PDP, however, dismissed the APC’s claim, noting that the appeal on the matter had been dismissed on January 13, 2025, for lack of diligent prosecution.
The APC has since applied to the Court of Appeal to relist its appeal against the Federal High Court ruling that removed its LG chairmen and councillors in November 2022. Ruling on the application has been adjourned indefinitely.
Meanwhile, the Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC) in Osun has urged the Federal Government not to punish local governments or residents over the electoral dispute.
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