Court summons CBN to account for N100.1m police judgment debt

A Federal High Court in Osogbo, Osun State, on Wednesday directed the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to explain why a judgment debt of N100.1 million, incurred by the Nigeria Police Force, the Inspector General of Police, and two others, should not be paid to the applicants.

The case involves the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission (OSSIEC) and its chairman, Hasim Abioye, who filed the suit (FHC/OS/CS/41/2025) through an ex parte motion dated January 12, 2026. Their counsel, I.T. Tewogbade, argued that the judgment debtors have yet to fulfill the damages awarded against them.

Other respondents in the suit include the Police Service Commission, Osun State Police Commissioner and the Central Bank of Nigeria.

They urged the court to freeze the account of the judgment debtors, domiciled with the CBN, the ganishee, to the tune of N100.1 million, being the damages and costs they incurred in an earlier judgment delivered by the court.

Justice Adefunmilola Demi-Ajayi of the Federal High Court, Osogbo had, on November 17, 2025, awarded N100 million in damages and N100,000 as cost against the Inspector-General of Police, the Nigeria Police Force, Osun State Police Commissioner, and the Police Service Commission over actions taken to halt the February 22, 2025, local government election in Osun State.

The judge further held that the “sealing of the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission, OSSIEC, offices and the arrest of its staff were unlawful.”

Demi-Ajayi also ruled that “the Nigerian Police failed to present any law that had been breached to justify the actions taken against the electoral body before the poll.”

When the parties returned to the court on Wednesday, the applicants’ counsel, Tewogbade, moved the motion ex parte on behalf of his clients, asking the court to grant the two reliefs sought by them.

The reliefs sought by the applicants partly read, “AN ORDER NISI directing the Garnishee to show cause why the amount standing to the credit of the Judgment Debtors or so much of it that is enough to pay the outstanding judgment debt of N100,000,000.00 (One Hundred Million Naira Only) and cost of N100,000.00 (One Hundred Thousand Naira Only) in the Judgment Debtors’ account(s), including all their shares of monies in the Single Treasury Account (TSA) of the Federal Government of Nigeria domiciled with the Garnishee Bank (Central Bank of Nigeria), should not be paid over to the Judgment Creditors in satisfaction of the judgment of this court delivered on 17th day of November, 2025, between the Judgment Creditors and the Judgment Debtors.

AN ORDER NISI directing the Garnishee to show cause why the amount (One Hundred Thousand Naira Only) in the Judgment Debtors’ accounts and all their other accounts, including all their shares of monies in the Single Treasury Account (TSA) of the Federal Government of Nigeria, domiciled with

The Garnishee Bank (Central Bank of Nigeria) to the Judgment Creditors of the judgment delivered in FHC/OS/CS/41/2025 on the 17th day of November, 2025, between the Judgment Creditors and the Judgment Debtors upon disobedience of the Judgment Debtors to carry out the order of theCourt accordingly.”

In her ruling, Justice Demi-Ajayi granted the reliefs sought, saying “Orders granted as prayed.”