A High Court of Delta State sitting in Obiaruku has granted permission for a councillor in Ukwuani Local Government Area to institute mandamus proceedings against the council’s chairman and treasurer over alleged non-disclosure of statutory financial records.
The order was granted on January 19, 2026, by Justice S. L. Okeleke, following an ex parte application filed on behalf of the councillor, Chukwuemeke Victor, who represents Ward 19 of Ezhionum Kingdom in Ukwuani LGA.
The application was argued by Evans Ufeli, lead partner of Evans Ufeli Chambers.
In his ruling, Justice Okeleke held that the applicant had demonstrated sufficient legal interest to approach the court, having regard to his status as a serving member of the local government legislative council.
The court accordingly granted leave for the commencement of mandamus proceedings as sought.
Following the ruling, the councillor has filed a Motion on Notice seeking substantive reliefs against the Chairman of Ukwuani Local Government Council, Barrister Chiamaka Solomon Possible Ajede; the council’s Treasurer, Solomon Johnson Udih; and the Ukwuani Local Government Legislative House.
The motion, brought under Order 44 Rules 1 to 3 of the Delta State High Court (Civil Procedure) Rules, 2018, and relevant provisions of the Delta State Local Government Establishment Law, 2017, alleged that the executive arm of the council has consistently failed to publish and declare the council’s monthly revenue, income and expenditure from July 2024 to date.
The applicant is asking the court to declare that the treasurer’s failure to make the financial records public constitutes a breach of statutory duty.
He is further seeking an order of mandamus compelling the council chairman to direct the treasurer to immediately publish the financial statements in line with existing legal requirements.
The councillor is also urging the court to compel the chairman to provide the legislative arm with the council’s monthly wage bill and performance index for the 2025 budget, with copies made available to all councillors.
In addition, the suit questions the process through which the 2025 budget was approved, alleging that it was passed within two days without adequate legislative scrutiny or debate.
The applicant further claims that the budget improperly merged expenditure items belonging to Ukwuani Local Government Area with those of Ika North East Local Government Area, describing the development as unlawful and lacking transparency.
As part of the reliefs sought, the councillor is asking the court to restrain the chairman from presenting the 2026 draft budget to the legislative house until full compliance with statutory financial disclosure obligations is achieved.
He is also seeking an order barring the legislative arm from considering or approving the 2026 budget pending the resolution of the alleged infractions.
In a supporting statement, the applicant maintained that all internal efforts to enforce compliance with financial transparency requirements had failed.
It also argued that recourse to the court had become necessary to promote accountability, transparency and good governance at the local government level.
