In a landmark decision delivered on 7 February 2025, in Appeal No. SC/255/2007: Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala v. Gani Fawehinmi & Ors., the Supreme Court ruled that mere status as a taxpayer does not, in itself, grant a plaintiff standing to initiate a public interest litigation suit.
The dispute began on 21 October 2004, when the late Chief Gani Fawehinmi, SAN, filed a suit at the Federal High Court via originating summons against the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission, Dr. Mrs. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and another minister. The questions raised by the Plaintiff included whether public officers, particularly Ministers were entitled to salaries outside the salary prescribed by law (the Certain Political, Public and Judicial Office Holders (Salaries & Allowances, etc.) Act No. 6 of 2002); whether payments could be made in foreign currency to such public officers or Ministers; and whether the President’s authorisation of these salaries amounted to an abuse of power.
The Respondents challenged the competence of the suit on the ground that the Plaintiff had no locus standi to commence the action. The Federal High Court agreed with the submissions of the Respondents and struck out the suit. However, the Court of Appeal upturned the ruling of the Federal High Court and held that the Plaintiff rightly possessed the locus standi to commence the action. The Court of Appeal further held that the requirement of locus standi becomes unnecessary in constitutional issues as it merely impedes judicial functions. The Court further ruled that a taxpayer has sufficient interest to commence an action to ensure that his tax money is utilized prudently. The Respondents to the appeal then appealed to the Supreme Court.
In the course of the proceedings at the Supreme Court, Mohammed Fawehinmi and Saheed Fawehinmi were successively substituted for Gani Fawehinmi as representatives of his estate, upon his passing. One of the issues before the apex court was whether the Court of Appeal was right to have held that Chief Gani Fawehinmi had the locus standi to commence the action.
In its judgment, the Supreme Court held that; (i) Fawehinmi did not have the necessary standing to institute the case; (ii) that even if Fawehinmi had standing at the time the suit was filed, it did not survive his passing, and his estate could not inherit the right to pursue the action; and (iii) the assertion of locus standi by Fawehinmi, based solely on his position as a Senior Advocate, political party chairman, and taxpayer, was insufficient because he failed to provide evidence that his interested was directly affected, and as such, his claim was not valid.
This judgment settles a long festering debate on the above subject and serves as a significant reminder of the intricate balance between the powers of public officers and the rights of citizens to challenge perceived abuses.
SSK’s handling of this complex case demonstrates the firm’s expertise and competence in public policy and constitutional law. The SSK team was led by Mrs. Chinasa Unaegbunam SAN FCIArb and assisted by Omono Blessing Omaghomi MCIArb, Paschal Ukah and Akinola Oladimeji.
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