Osun Challenges Court Order Freezing Accounts

The Osun State Government announced Sunday that it has petitioned the Federal High Court in Lagos to set aside an ex parte order restricting access to its bank accounts over a $13.9 million arbitration award granted to Gamji Nigeria Company Limited.

Commercial banks had placed a “Post No Debit” restriction on the state’s accounts following an interim order issued by Justice D.E. Osiagor under suit FHC/L/CS/1233/2026.

State officials reassured the public that swift legal action is underway to vacate the freeze and secure a full judicial review of the dispute.

In a statement released by the Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Kolapo Alimi, the state government declared that Gamji procured the order through deceit and substantial non-disclosure of material facts.

Alimi emphasised that the arbitration award contains several irregularities, prompting state lawyers to challenge its validity at the Lagos State High Court.

He added that Gamji referenced a non-existent July 2024 award to obtain the September 9 interim order, noting that the actual award occurred in July 2026 and remains under active legal challenge.

Traceable to a 2017 contract dispute under former Governor Adegboyega Oyetola, the conflict escalated after the previous administration rejected Gamji’s price variation request.

The state government contends that subsequent arbitration proceedings were deliberately mismanaged to favour the firm while denying Osun State a fair hearing.

State lawyers had already filed a motion to set aside the award and suspend execution on September 1, 2026, serving both applications on Gamji before the company approached the Federal High Court.

Osun State maintained that Gamji concealed these ongoing proceedings when seeking the account freeze.

Having filed a formal motion on notice to set aside the September 9 order, state officials expressed confidence that the court will reverse the freeze while refraining from further comment on the sub judice matter.