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The 30 elected council chairmen in Osun State secured a fresh court order against the United Bank for Africa (UBA), freezing accounts allegedly opened by sacked All Progressives Congress (APC) council bosses.
This is the latest development on lingering controversy over the control of local government allocations in the state.
An Oyo State High Court sitting in Ibadan, presided over by Justice A. L. Akintola, on Thursday granted the interim injunction in an ex-parte motion brought by the elected chairmen.
The order restrains UBA from paying, releasing, or tampering with funds deposited in 30 local government accounts where the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had controversially lodged statutory allocations belonging to Osun councils.
A Certified True Copy (CTC) of the order, signed by the Principal Registrar of the Oyo State High Court, Mrs. B. O. Somide, was issued on October 2, 2025.
The claimants, led by Hon. Sarafadeen Awotunde and five others, argued that unless the court acted swiftly, the funds risked being illegally dissipated by the ousted APC chairmen, thereby crippling the lawful administration of the councils.
In his ruling, Justice Akintola held that the matter required urgent judicial intervention.
“Having carefully considered the claimants/applicants’ motion ex-parte together with the supporting affidavits and exhibits, this court is satisfied that the claimants/applicants have successfully made out a case for urgent and timely intervention, as any delay in granting the interim orders might foist irreversible harm on them,” he declared.
Consequently, the court granted:
1. An order of interim injunction restraining UBA from paying, releasing, disbursing, or tampering with funds in the disputed local government accounts.
2. An order of mandatory injunction directing UBA to place a Post No Debit (PND) lien on the affected accounts, pending the determination of the substantive motion.
The affected accounts include those of all 30 local governments in Osun State, ranging from Atakumosa East to Osogbo Local Government Area, each identified by name and account number.
The suit, filed as Suit No. 1/1167/2025 at Court No. 5 of the Ibadan Judicial Division, was moved by claimants’ counsel, Olalekan Adeoye (Esq). Hearing of the substantive motion on interlocutory injunction was adjourned to October 9, 2025.
This latest ruling deepens the legal tussle over Osun’s local government allocations, which has pitted sacked APC chairmen against the current elected PDP chairmen.
Only last week, the Osun State Government, through its Attorney-General, secured a similar injunction against the disputed accounts. Hearing in that case, also before Justice Akintola, comes up today (Friday).
The development has further heightened political tension across Osun communities, with both camps awaiting the next phase of the courtroom battle that could determine the fate of billions in grassroots allocations.
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