The Human and Environmental Development Agenda (HEDA Resource Centre) has strongly criticized the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) for what it described as a “deliberate evasion” of a Supreme Court ruling on local government funding in Rivers State.
In a statement signed by its Chairman, Olanrewaju Suraju, HEDA expressed dismay over the CBN’s response to its April 28, 2025 letter, which urged the apex bank to halt allocations to caretaker-led local governments in the state. The civil society group condemned the CBN’s reliance on pending litigation as justification for inaction, calling it an affront to the Supreme Court and Nigeria’s constitutional order.
According to HEDA, the Supreme Court had in AG Federation vs. AG Abia State & Ors (2004) clearly ruled that local government allocations must be paid directly to democratically elected councils, in line with Section 162 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended). It argued that the CBN’s position ignored this binding interpretation and amounted to aiding an unconstitutional practice.
“The CBN is hiding behind irrelevant court cases to justify the unlawful disbursement of public funds to unelected officials,” HEDA stated. “This is not just administrative negligence but a dangerous precedent that undermines democracy and the authority of the judiciary.”
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The group urged the CBN to immediately suspend all allocations to the Sole Administrator currently overseeing local governments in Rivers State until duly elected councils are reinstated. It warned that continued disbursement of funds would represent executive lawlessness and contempt of the nation’s highest court.
“We demand that the CBN complies without delay with the Supreme Court’s judgment. Anything short of this will be considered a gross violation of constitutional provisions and a betrayal of the Bank’s fiduciary responsibilities,” the statement stated.
