Appeal Court dismisses case seeking suspension of N579 billion stamp duty judgement

The High Court of Appeal in Abuja on Friday dismissed an application seeking to stay the execution of a Federal High Court judgment which ordered that Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to pay Kasmal International Services N579 billion and 10 percent annual interest on the amount, for its stamp collection service.

The appeal was filed by the School of Banking Honors against Kasmal, with the CBN and the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) as parties.

A three-member panel of the Court of Appeal unanimously ruled on Friday that the appeal was without merit and constituted an abuse of court.

History of the Case

A Federal High Court in Abuja, on October 11, 2024, ordered the CBN to serve the decision on Kasmal, following a case involving the collection of stamps.

The trial judge, Inyang Ekwo, who presided over the case, ruled that Kasmal was entitled to the money based on his contract with the Nigerian Postal Service (NIPOST).

According to the court, the CBN has already paid Kasmal N10.3 billion, representing 15 percent of the stamps collected from Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) between 1 January 2015, and 31 January 2020. The payment came from CBN-NIPOST Stamp Collection Account Number 3000047517.

Mr Ekwo ruled that the CBN cannot reverse its actions in Kasmal and NIPOST.

Kasmal’s lawyer, Alex Izinyon, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), said his client was appointed by NIPOST to oversee the collection of N50 stamps on receipts issued by banks and financial institutions for remittances and deposits of N1,000 above, in accordance with the Stamp Duties Act and Nigeria Financial Regulations 2009.

Appeal to CBN and AGF

Dissatisfied with the decision, the CBN and the AGF filed a notice of appeal on 24 October 2024, citing 17 grounds for appeal.

Their chief judge, Chief Akintola, said the Federal Court erred in sentencing Kasmal.

The defendants argued that the stamp duty is a federal fund of the Federation Account, as provided for under Section 162 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).

They insisted that all the money should be divided among the three government departments and not given to a private organization.

Meanwhile, the Honorable School of Banking asked the Court of Appeal to stay the implementation of the decision and to grant leave to appeal.

The organization asked for an extension of time to file an appeal and sought leave to appeal against the decision and the actual decision.

It also sought an injunction restraining the CBN from complying with the court order.

Opposite of Kasmal

In response, Kasmal’s lawyer, Mr. Izinyon, filed a statement of objection, opposing the request to stop the execution.

He argued that the appeal and the leave application were not final, saying:

“There will be more complaints if the proposal is approved.”

Mr Izinyon said the decision of the High Court was final and the appellant did not seek leave to appeal.

Controlling

Delivering the judgment of the Court of Appeal on Friday, a member of the Court of Appeal, Okon Abang, agreed with Mr. Izinyon saying that the petition was frivolous and frivolous.

“It is not clear what the applicant wants,” he said.

The judge said it appears that the petitioner is gambling with the judicial system.

“You have appealed; I ask you for permission to appeal?” he asked.

The judge described the application for a stay and leave as frivolous and an abuse of court process.

“In the instant appeal, the petitioner has no reasonable notice of appeal and has unfortunately failed to put together and provide an appellate record in this matter.”

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“To put it mildly, this application is a gross abuse, disregard of the judicial process and a waste of judicial time.

“It is clear that the petitioner has no valid or proper appeal against the decision of the trial court.

“The application is dismissed, and the sum of N300,000 is awarded in favor of Kasmal,” the judge ruled.

He said the petition was brought in bad faith and wasted valuable judicial time.