The Supreme Court has reserved its judgment on the suit filed by Abia State government seeking to void the Executive Order 10 issued by President Muhammadu Buhari in 2020 on the funding of the Judiciary.
The State Government is also seeking declarative order that it is the responsibility of federal government to fund High Courts, Sharia Court of Appeal and Customary Court of Appeal .
Abia State government had last year through its Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice instituted the legal action against the federal government asking for a refund of over N66bn the state government had spent on capital projects of the courts.
The State Government in the suit marked: SC/655/2020, stated that section 6 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic Nigeria as (amended) created the court and therefore federal government should fund them like other institution.
They also want the court to void the Executive Order 10 issued by President Muhammadu Buhari in 2020 on the funding of the Judiciary, particularly at the state level.
A seven-member panel of the Supreme Court, led by Justice Musa Dattijo Muhammad, after listening to arguments from lawyers to parties, Augustine Alegeh (SAN) representing the.plaintiff and TA Gazali (SAN) the defendant , said they would be informed when the judgment is ready.
Beside the lawyers to parties, the Supreme Court also listened to the submissions from five (amici curiae), friends of the court who were invited by the apex court to assist with their legal opinions in the issues in contention
The invited senior lawyers are Chief Adegboyega Awomola (SAN); former President of the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA), Olisa Agbakoba (SAN); Sebastine Hon (SAN); Mahmud Magaji (SAN) and Musibau Adetunbi (SAN).Awomolo, Agbokugba, Hon and Adetunbi prayed the court to grant the declarative order while Magaji asked the Court to dismiss the suit.