CBN Wins Appeal, Garnishee Order of N100.1m Overturned

On Wednesday, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) achieved a significant legal victory when the Court of Appeal in Abuja, led by Justice Okon Abang, overturned a N100.1 million garnishee order that had been imposed by the Federal High Court. The initial ruling, made on May 19, 2016, involved a judgment debt against the Imo State Government, which had been pursued by Andrew Okoroji.

The appellate court determined that the Federal High Court acted on speculation rather than credible evidence, emphasizing that the CBN did not maintain an account for the Imo State Government and did not owe any attachable debt. Justice Abang criticized the trial court for making the garnishee order absolute without resolving factual disputes and highlighted that the evidence presented was fundamentally deficient.

The Court of Appeal unanimously allowed the appeal, set aside the garnishee order, and awarded N1 million in costs against Okoroji, stating that the trial court's order was based on imagination rather than fact.