Federal High Court Dismisses £950 Trillion Suit Against Atiku Abubakar, Describes Case as Frivolous
The Federal High Court in Abuja has thrown out a controversial £950 trillion human rights lawsuit filed by businessman Tunde Omosebi against former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar and several others, citing a lack of legal merit and serious procedural flaws.
Justice James Omotosho, delivering judgment on Thursday, said the case, originally filed on June 5, 2024, was “highly unreasonable” and lacked any sustainable cause of action. The case was marked FHC/ABJ/CS/767/2024.
Omosebi initially sued Hallies & Partner Ltd, Atiku Abubakar, Clifford Odibe, and Daniel Mbohok, but later expanded the list to 13 defendants without obtaining court permission—an action the judge declared procedurally invalid.
In his originating motion, Omosebi claimed to be a politician and businessman holding titles such as Chairman of the Federal Executive Council and Prime Minister of Nigeria. He alleged that agents of Hallies & Partner Ltd assaulted and threatened him at his office in July 2023, violating his rights to dignity and liberty.
Omosebi demanded £950 trillion in compensation for the alleged assault, along with £95 trillion in exemplary damages, and asked the court to compel public apologies from the defendants in media outlets worldwide.
He also sought a restraining order banning the defendants and their associates from coming within 20 kilometres of his properties and businesses.
However, Justice Omotosho firmly rejected the suit, warning against the abuse of judicial processes and frivolous claims. He stressed that the court must conserve judicial time and resources, and not entertain baseless litigation.
“We cannot continue this way because the temple of justice is not open for everything,” he said.
The judge also revealed that Omosebi had a pending separate case against the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Olayemi Cardoso, and several banks, seeking another astronomical sum of £990 trillion. The court has scheduled June 4 to rule on preliminary objections in that matter.
Justice Omotosho further urged the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) to play an active role in discouraging the filing of unfounded and excessive claims in court.
