CBN, AGF threaten sanction against government officials as judgement debts involving MDAs swell

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, have raised the alarm over the increasing judgement debts against Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) of the federal government.

They expressed this concern while speaking on Thursday in Abuja, at the 2024 Roundtable with Legal Advisers of Ministries, Departments and Agencies of the federal government.

Among major concerns are that the sporadic rise in judgement debts recovered through garnishee orders by the courts threaten the availability of funds for development in the country.

The Deputy Governor, Corporate Services of the CBN, Dr. Bala Mohammed Bello, who expressed worries over the huge number of garnishee orders against the federal government, traced the increase to the introduction of the Treasury Single Account (TSA) policy of the federal government in August 2015.

Bala, who was represented by the Director Legal Services, CBN, Mr Kofo Salam-Alada, said, “It is also pertinent to point out that prior to 2015 the number of cases stood at 441 (Four Hundred and Forty-One) and has since increased exponentially in terms of volume to 1629 (One Thousand Six Hundred and Twenty-Nine), and also in financial value, post 2015.

“Our inquisition on this development revealed that the upturn was a result of apathy by most MDAs towards adequately defending their cases in Court, which in most cases will result in a judgement against the MDA”.

He stated that to address the issues, stakeholders must demonstrate a commitment towards the adoption of appropriate case management strategies and standardized practices across MDAs, adding that the purpose of the Round Table was to jointly come up with solutions to tackle the situation.

“We all know that our country Nigeria is faced with dwindling income and escalating expenditure. This also makes it imperative for us all to put on our thinking caps and participate actively in this session in order to safeguard the limited resources available to the country.

“The CBN remains committed to playing its role as banker and providing economic and financial advice to the federal government”, he added.

Meanwhile, Salami-Alado, in a paper he delivered identified the continued display of apathy by MDAs towards putting up robust defence in respect of their cases in court which inevitably culminates in judgements being given against them as one of the factors excercibating garnishee orders.

The other he said, is the non-compliance with judgements of courts without appeal against same by affected MDAs, (i.e. without entering appeals against the substantive suits and or obtaining stay of execution.)

“This attitude, if left unchecked, may not only impact on the ability of the MDA to carry out its activities, but would also contribute to a drain on the scarce resources of the federal government”, he said.

Meanwhile, the AGF in his speech expressed happiness with the CBN, particularly the legal department of the Bank for this initiative and collaborative efforts with the Federal Ministry of Justice to rescue government agencies from mountains of judgement debts.

“Let me reiterate that as legal advisors to the government, we play a pivotal role in shaping the legal landscape of our nation, safeguarding the state’s assets, avoidance of undue embarrassment to government, and ensuring the smooth functioning of public services.

“Our work touches every facet of public life, from reviewing and rendering appropriate and sound legal advice to defending government’s interests in court. It is important to note that the quality of our work directly impacts the effectiveness and legitimacy of government actions.

Fagbemi spoke through the Solicitor General of the Federation and Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Justice, Mrs Beatrice Jedy-Agba.

He stressed the importance of providing exceptional legal services by approaching each case with diligence, professionalism, high ethics, integrity, and commitment to upholding public policy.

“Let me use this opportunity to state that the government will no longer condone instances of liability arising from compromises, lack of diligent prosecution/defence of cases, or sheer incompetence exhibited by attorneys acting on behalf of government.

“While we will take measures to recognize and reward diligence, we will not hesitate to apply appropriate sanctions to officers who have failed to live up to the ethics of both the profession and the public service”, he added.