A High Court of Justice in Adamawa state has been asked to stop Governor Murtala Nyako of AdamawaState from securing over N3.7billion loan from Islamic Development Bank, IDB.
Adamawa State indigenes, through their lawyer, Mr. Dan Kozah, are praying the court for an order restraining the Governor from sourcing for external loans or granting approval for the sourcing of external loans either from the IDB or any other financial institutions pending hearing and determination of their motion on notice.
Whereas three of the indigenes, Engineer Albert Stephen, Dr. Penni Boga and Francis Zira, endorsed the suit on behalf of the others, those listed as defendants were Governor Nyako; the Adamawa State House of Assembly and the Attorney-General and Commissioner of Justice of the State.
In their statement of claim, the plaintiffs accused Nyako of putting machinery in place to secure a loan to the tune of $24, 113, 417.00 on behalf of the State from IDB.
They maintained that considering the statutory allocation, internally generated revenue and the current debt burden, the state, is not in a position to take a loan from IDB or any bank.
They further argued that due to the Debt Management Office report and the state indebtedness, it is not in the interest of the state to seek any loan, domestic or international.
Therefore, they are asking the court to declare that the act of seeking approval to source for an external loan to the tune of $24, 113, 417,.00 from the IDB by the Adamawa state government is unreasonable, unwarranted and unconstitutional.
They also want a declaration that the consideration of or the granting of approval by the State House of Assembly to source and or obtain an external loan from IDB to the tune of $24, 133, 417.00 by the Adamawa state government is unreasonable, unwarranted and unconstitutional.
The plaintiffs contended that obtaining a loan from IDB which operates purely Islamic Banking and Islamic Economic Principles by Adamawa state government upon the application by the state government is discriminatory and a breach of the Governor’s oath of office under the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. [Vanguard]
