Oyo court freezes 30 UBA accounts in Osun local-government funds dispute

An Oyo State High Court sitting in Ibadan on Friday extended an order restraining the United Bank for Africa (UBA) from allowing withdrawals from 30 bank accounts into which the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had lodged withheld allocations meant for Osun State local governments.

Justice Ladiran Akintola, who gave the ruling in Suit No. 1/1149/2025, said the interim injunction — originally granted on September 26 — was being prolonged to ensure a fair hearing for all parties to the suit, including the Attorney-General of Osun State, the Osun State Local Government Service Commission and UBA Plc.

Counsel to UBA was absent at the hearing. Lawyers representing the court-sacked All Progressives Congress (APC) council chairmen, led by Kazeem Gbadamosi, SAN, were in court after filing an application to be joined in the matter and another challenge to the court’s territorial jurisdiction. The plaintiffs’ counsel, Musibau Adetunmbi, SAN, told the court he needed time to study the late filings.

The freeze bars UBA from paying, releasing or otherwise tampering with the funds in the 30 accounts pending the determination of the substantive issues. The monies were said to have been paid into the accounts by the CBN following disputes over the control of local government allocations in Osun.

At the sitting, the court admitted a further affidavit from Mrs. Rachael Abidemi, Head of Local Government Administration in Boluwaduro Local Government Area, which allegedly attempts to siphon council funds despite the subsisting court order. The affidavit referred to a letter purportedly sent to UBA by two individuals who styled themselves as chairman and treasurer of a council instructing the deduction of 15 per cent of statutory allocations into the account of a private law firm — an action the affidavit described as unlawful.

The legal tussle has spawned multiple parallel proceedings. The matter is expected to feature before the Supreme Court on Tuesday, October 7, 2025, where a related application will be heard, according to reports. Lawyers for the Attorney-General argued the funds should remain secured pending the apex court’s determination.