Federal High Court Dismisses £990 Trillion Suit Against CBN, Bars Claimant from Filing Further Cases

The Federal High Court in Abuja on Wednesday dismissed a suit filed by Tunde Omosebi demanding £990 trillion in damages from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and others, describing the claim as incomprehensible and lacking merit. Justice James Omotosho also barred Omosebi from filing further suits against the CBN unless represented by a lawyer or certified mentally fit by the Chief Medical Officer of the National Hospital.

The court found that Omosebi’s suit failed to disclose any reasonable cause of action or demonstrate a breach of fundamental rights. “This suit is hereby dismissed for not being a fundamental rights suit, for lack of reasonable cause of action against any of the defendants, and for being incomprehensible,” Justice Omotosho ruled.

Omosebi, who referred to himself as “His Majesty” and claimed to be the Prime Minister and Chairman of the Federal Executive Council of Nigeria, had sued CBN Governor Olayemi Cardoso, the CEOs of UBA, GTBank, and Zenith Bank, as well as Senate President Godswill Akpabio and House Speaker Tajudeen Abbas. He later attempted to expand the list of defendants to 57, including Nigerian airlines, without court approval.

Among his six original reliefs, Omosebi sought £990 trillion for “traumatic torture,” the conversion of the CBN into a “Reserve Bank of Nigeria,” and a reclassification of Nigerian banks into a so-called “DRIG Bank.” He also demanded £99 trillion in exemplary damages, 10% interest, and ?5 million in legal costs.

Justice Omotosho stated that the claims were not only unfounded but also fantastical. “The more the court read the plaintiff’s processes, the more confused it became as to what exactly was being claimed,” he remarked. The court could not find any legal basis or factual backing for the reliefs sought, nor evidence of financial harm, bank account restrictions, or violations of rights.

Omotosho also questioned Omosebi’s mental state, noting his erratic litigation history, including a similarly bizarre suit filed against former Vice President Atiku Abubakar. “The plaintiff is psychologically imbalanced and not fit to present his case,” the judge said, warning against further misuse of judicial time.

The judge ordered that:

• Omosebi must not file any case unless through a legal practitioner or with a medical certificate confirming his mental competence.
• All registries of the Federal High Court are to reject any suit he files unless these conditions are met.

Two senior advocates present in court praised the ruling. Ikechukwu Ezechukwu (SAN) likened the suit to “Onitsha Market literature,” commending the judge’s patience. Sanusi Musa (SAN) said Omosebi’s actions highlighted a gap in legal safeguards against abuse of court processes and called on the National Assembly to amend the law to prevent similar frivolous cases.