The vehicles were allegedly cornered by the former governor and his supporters prior to his vacation of Government House, Gusau on 29 May, 2023.
A Federal High Court in Sokoto has dismissed a suit filed by the immediate past Governor of Zamfara State, Bello Matawalle over ownership of over the ownership of more than 50 vehicles said to belong to Zamfara State Government. The vehicles were allegedly cornered by the former governor and his supporters prior to the handing over of power on 29 May, 2023.
Following the action, the Zamfara State Police Command in June this year raided Mr Matawalle's residences and recovered official vehicles as ordered by the court.
The former resisted the action and filed an objection at the Federal High Court. But the Sokoto Division of the Federal High Court on Friday rejected Mr Matawalle's claims over ownership of the official vehicles.
The Spokesperson of the Zamfara State Governor, Sulaiman Bala Idris hailed the decision of the court. According to him, the former governor and his cabinet members carted away several critical official vehicles belonging to the state government, "thereby leaving the present administration with nothing to use".
Mr Idris said in a statement on Monday: "Recall that in June, the Zamfara State Government gave the former governor and his deputy five working days to return all official vehicles taken away.
"All demands for the return of the said vehicles proved abortive, and as a result, the Zamfara State Government resorted to obtaining a court order to retrieve them. In pursuit of that order, a total number of over 50 vehicles were recovered by the police.
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"After the vehicles were recovered, Bello Matawalle quickly went to the Federal High Court in Gusau. The court granted an order for the cars to be returned to him. Additionally, he filed a separate suit at the same court, seeking to enforce his fundamental right to own property, including the vehicles in question.
"The Zamfara State Government requested the transfer of the case to another jurisdiction of the Federal High Court.
"The Federal High Court of Nigeria, Sokoto Judicial Division, dismissed the matter on Friday. The court refused the reliefs sought by Bello Matawalle and rejected his claim to the ownership of the official vehicles. As a result, the vehicles are still considered the property of the Zamfara State Government.
"Our government is committed to recovering all that rightfully belongs to the people through an all-encompassing rescue mission that leaves no stone unturned.
"The judgment by the Federal High Court will encourage us to ensure that justice prevails and all perpetrators of financial banditry in Zamfara are brought to book," Mr Idris added.
The current administration of Governor Dauda Lawal in the state has severally accused the former governor, Mr Matawalle of allegedly blowing billions of naira belonging to the people of Zamfara State on abandoned projects, shady contract deals and other forms of alleged financial recklessness. The former governor is the incumbent Minister of State for Defence.
