By Ayodele Oni
Osun State Government has assured residents of the state that it is taking necessary legal steps to vacate the order freezing accounts of government and protect the interests of the state through judicial review of the order.
Citing concealment of material facts by Gamji Nigeria Company Limited, to obtain the exparte order at the Federal High Court, Lagos, Osun State Government confirmed that it has approached the Court to seek the setting aside of an ex-parte order freezing some of its accounts.
The state government, in an application filed on October 2, 2026, is challenging the order made by the Federal High Court on September 9, 2026, arguing that it was procured through what it described as “deceit and substantial non-disclosure of material facts.”
In a statement on Sunday, the Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Oluomo Kolapo Alimi, explained that government also challenged the arbitration award upon which the account-freezing order was reportedly based.
According to the statement, the state government’s legal team has already approached the Lagos state High Court to challenge the validity of the arbitral award before Gamji approached the Federal High Court to enforce it.
The government said the suit challenging the award was filed on September 1, 2026, alongside a motion on notice seeking to suspend execution of the award pending the determination of the case.
It alleged that Gamji Nigeria Company Limited was duly served with the court processes, but failed to disclose to the Federal High Court that the award was already being challenged before the Lagos State High Court.
The government further disputed the reference to a July 2024 arbitral award in the September 9 order, saying there was no such award against the state at that time.
It stated that the only arbitral award against the state was issued in July 2026 and that the award was already being challenged before the Lagos State High Court.
The government traced the underlying dispute to a 2017 contract entered into during the administration of former Governor Gboyega Oyetola, saying the disagreement arose, among other issues, from a variation request by Gamji.
It revealed that the dispute included a claim that the state government was indebted to Gamji Nigeria Company Limited to the tune of $15,982,638.22, an amount the government said remained contested.
According to the government, the subsequent arbitration process was characterised by irregularities and alleged denial of fair hearing and full participation by the state.
The government noted that those alleged irregularities are among the issues now before the Lagos State High Court in its bid to set aside the arbitral award.
It maintained that Gamji’s decision to approach the Federal High Court while the award was already being challenged, constituted a material omission that ought to have been disclosed to the court.
The state government said it has formally presented its motion seeking to set aside the September 9 order and has brought the alleged non-disclosure to the attention of the Federal High Court.
It, however, added that it would refrain from making further comments on the merits of the dispute because the matter is sub judice.
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