The Supreme Court has instructed governors from all 36 states in Nigeria to provide their defenses in response to a lawsuit initiated by the federal government advocating for full autonomy for the country’s 774 local governments.
The case, registered as SC/CV/343/2024, seeks to halt governors from arbitrarily dissolving democratically elected local councils.
In a session held on Thursday, a seven-member panel of the apex court directed the governors, represented by their state attorneys-general, to submit their responses to the originating summons within seven days.
Additionally, the court instructed the attorney-general of the federation (AGF), Lateef Fagbemi, to submit his response within two days of receiving the states’ replies.
Garba Lawal, who headed the Supreme Court panel, agreed with the AGF’s argument that shortening the timeline was crucial given the case’s national significance.
The Supreme Court set a deadline of June 10 for the filing and exchange of all legal documents, scheduling the hearing for June 13.
Lawal also directed that new hearing notices be served to the eight states that were absent during Thursday’s proceedings. These states include Borno, Kano, Kogi, Niger, Ogun, Osun, Oyo, and Sokoto.
