THE Supreme Court has dismissed a lawsuit filed by the 36 state governments seeking to compel the Federal Government to account for revenues from the sale of liquefied natural gas, natural gas liquids, and related products since 1999.
In a unanimous ruling, a seven-member panel led by Justice Uwani Abba-Aji determined that the court lacked original jurisdiction to hear the case, which listed the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) as the sole defendant. Justice Mohammed Lawal Garba, delivering the lead judgment, upheld the AGF’s preliminary objection, noting that the issues raised in the case had already been addressed in a prior Supreme Court decision involving the Attorney General of Bauchi State and the AGF.
Justice Garba agreed with the defendant that the current case was an attempt to revisit matters already resolved in the earlier judgment, which dealt with revenues accruable to the federation and payable into the federation account. As a result, the court ruled that it lacked jurisdiction over the matter and struck out the case.
Other panel members, including Justices Emmanuel Agim, Simon Tsammani, Stephen Adah, and Jamilu Tukur, concurred with the lead judgment.
The states had sought several reliefs, including an order for the Federal Government to account for income earned from its shareholding in the Nigeria LNG Limited, held through the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), since October 1999. They also requested the payment of $17 billion in dividends and other revenues into the federation account for redistribution among the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
Additionally, the states sought declarations affirming that revenues from natural gas and related activities are public funds under Nigerian law, requiring their remittance into the consolidated revenue fund for appropriation and distribution.
However, the court’s ruling effectively dismissed all these claims due to a lack of jurisdiction.
