Attorney General Of Adamawa State & Ors V. Attorney General Of The Federation (2014)

LAWGLOBAL HUB Lead Judgment Report

MARY UKAEGO PETER-ODILI, J.S.C.

The Plaintiffs by a Writ of Summons filed on the 22nd day of February, 2011 initiated this suit and by it activated the original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court, suit being one between the Attorney General of Adamawa State and 15 others against the Attorney General of the Federation.

The Claims set out by the plaintiffs are recast hereunder as follows:-

The Plaintiffs’ claim against the Defendant is for the sum of Seven Billion, Thirty Nine Million, Seven Hundred and Seventy Three Thousand, Three Hundred and Forty Eight Naira (N7,039,773,348.00) being the total outstanding value of the assets of the defunct Northern States Marketing Board taken over by the Federal Government of Nigeria that presently consist of Adamawa, Bauchi, Borno, Gombe, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Kogi, Kwara, Niger, Sokoto, Taraba, Yobe, and Zamfara States, which amount is computed in the following manner:-

A. Amount admitted by the Defendant as at 27th July, 1983, which is the sum of N3,091,710 (Three billion, Ninety-one Million, Seven Hundred and Seventeen thousand, Seven Hundred and Ten Naira) being the current equivalent of the admitted sum of N10,305,725.70 calculated in the following manner:-

i. The aforementioned amount admitted by the Defendant as at the time of takeover of Assets is the sum of N10,305,725.7.

ii. Rate of exchange between the Naira and the American Dollar at the time of takeover of assets was N0.50k to $1.00.

iii. American Dollar equivalent of the admitted sum at the time of takeover of assets calculated at the aforementioned governing exchange rate of N0.50k to $1.00 amounts to $20,611,451.40.

iv. Current official exchange rate between the Naira and the American Dollar is N150.00 to $1.00.

v. The standing total admitted sum calculated at the current aforementioned official exchange rate of N150.00 to $1.00 (that is $20,611,451.40 x N150.00), amounts to N3,091,717.710 (Three billion, Ninety-one million, Seven hundred and Seventeen thousand, Seven hundred and Ten Naira), and

B. Undisputed additional claim of the sum of N3,948,055,638 (Three billion, nine hundred and forty eight million, fifty-five thousand, six hundred and thirty-eight Naira) being the current equivalent of the additional undisputed claim of N13,160,185,46 submitted to the Defendant in August, 1984 calculated in the following manner:-

i. Total additional undisputed claim for movable properties and cotton store complexes taken over by the Defendant as at the time of taking over of assets is N13,160,185.46.

ii. Rate of exchange between the Naira and the America Dollar at the time of taking over of assets was calculated N0.50k to $1,00.

iii. American Dollar equivalent of additional undisputed claim at the time of taking over of assets calculated at the then governing exchange rate of N0.50k to $1.00 amounts to $26,320,370.92.