The Benue State government is grappling with the aftermath of consent judgments totaling at least N3.6 billion, inherited from the previous administration led by Samuel Ortom.
Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice and Public Order, Fidelis Mnyim, expressed concerns about the ongoing account garnishment due to these judgments.
In a recent telephone chat with journalists, Mnyim revealed that a court in Abuja had unfrozen N1.9 billion from garnished orders two weeks prior. He attributed the current administration’s struggles to the consent judgments entered into during Ortom’s tenure, specifically the agreement to pay claimants monthly, which was subsequently defaulted on before Governor Hyacinth Alia took office.
Mnyim stated, “I just finished with one of the inherited garnishee cases in Abuja. After my submission, the court has set it aside. The Benue State government account has been released from that N1.9 billion debt.”
He expressed optimism about resolving the remaining cases, saying, “Other ones are still in court, and we have filed our processes and are arguing. I am very sure that, by the grace of God, we are going to set all of them aside.”
The commissioner emphasized the challenges faced by the current administration, citing multiple garnishees on state government accounts.
He said, “It’s been like this since the beginning of Alia’s administration. Just last week, we had a coincidence of several garnishees on the state government accounts. In the last two weeks, we have one N1.9 billion in Abuja and one N800 million in LG, which emanated from the Vandeikya Local Government Area.”
Mnyim also highlighted the Nigerian constitution’s provision for local government financial independence, stressing that state government funds should not be garnished due to local government obligations. He mentioned an upcoming N900 million garnishee case in Jos, Plateau State, related to a local government area.
Governor Hyacinth Alia took office on May 29, 2023.
