The Federal High Court in Abuja has dismissed a suit by the Attorneys-General of the 36 states of the federation against the Federal Government. The suit had sought to stop the government from deducting $418m from states’ funds to settle debts owed consultants engaged by the states and local governments in relation to the Paris Club refunds.

By the suit marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/1313/2021, the plaintiff are seeking an order to restrain President Muhammadu Buhari and others from effecting the planned deduction from states’ funds to settle the debt owed consultants.

However, in his judgment on Friday, the presiding judge, Justice Inyang Ekwo held that the plaintiff had not shown enough evidence to accord them the locus standi to institute the action.

“There was no express evidence to show that the State Governors consented to filing of the suit.

“The office of the Attorney General of a State was created under Section 195 of the 1999 Constitution, as amended.

“The AG of a State is appointed by a Governor, which makes the AG an appointee, who is under the control of a governor.

“From the court’s findings, the plaintiff has no locus standi to file the suit, therefore there was no cause of action.

The court noted that the contention of the plaintiff that it was not a party to the judgment debt did not hold water because the Nigerian Governors Forum and the Association of Local Governments were parties in the suit.

The court further held that the plaintiffs had acknowledged the existence of judgment debt, insisting that the filing of the suit was a ploy to challenge the judgement debt.

Justice Ekwo noted that the action of the plaintiff amounted to an abuse of court process and subsequently dismissed the suit for lacking in merit.