Matawalle’s Appointment Under Fire as Group Seeks Court Intervention

By Abdulsalam Abdullahi, Kaduna

A legal battle has erupted over the academic records and curriculum vitae of the Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, as a non-governmental organization, Patriots for the Advancement of Peace and Social Development has dragged the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) and its Permanent Secretary to the Federal High Court in Abuja.

The suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/2449/2025, was filed on November 14, seeking the court’s intervention in compelling the SGF’s office to release Matawalle’s academic and appointment documents, which the organization had requested through a Freedom of Information (FOI) application.

The plaintiff, through its counsel, Mubarak Bala, argued that the SGF’s office had unlawfully declined to provide the requested information, citing Section 14(1) of the FOI Act, which protects personal information.

However, the plaintiff countered that Section 14(2) of the Act mandates disclosure where public interest outweighs possible harm to privacy, and that Matawalle’s academic and background records fall under matters of legitimate public interest, given his status as a public office holder.

The suit seeks several declarations, including that the SGF’s refusal to release Matawalle’s CV and supporting documents is unlawful and contrary to Sections 1(1), 4, 7, and 14(2) of the FOI Act, and that a minister’s CV submitted during the appointment process constitutes a public record under Section 2(6) of the Act.

The plaintiff is also seeking an order of mandamus compelling the SGF to release the documents or provide an official summary, as well as an order directing the respondents to pay N5,000,000 as general damages for the denial of access.

The applicant stated that it made a valid FOI request to the SGF’s office, which was denied on grounds of personal information protection, and that the refusal violated its statutory right to access public information.

The court has yet to fix a date for the hearing of the suit, which is expected to further fuel the ongoing debate over transparency and accountability in government.