The Federal High Court in Abuja on Wednesday ordered Pat Utomi, a Nigerian politician and professor of political economy, to be served with the suit instituted against him by the State Security Service (SSS) over his announced plan to establish a shadow government in the country.
The judge, James Omotosho, issued the order after granting an ex-parte motion argued by SSS’ lawyer, Akinlolu Kehinde, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN).
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Mr Omotosho ordered the secret police organisation’s suit to be delivered to Mr Utomi’s Lagos address through a courier service. The plaintiff gave Mr Utomi’s address, which the judge acted on, as 6 Balarabe Musa Crescent, Off Samuel Manuwa Street, Victoria Island, Lagos, State.
The SSS sued Mr Utomi last week, asking the court to declare his move to constitute a shadow government an attack on the Nigerian constitution.
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The agency said the call also constituted a threat to the current democratically elected government.
Mr Utomi, the 2007 presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, is sued as a sole defendant in the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/937/2025.
The judge, after ordering Mr Utomi to be served with the court processes, fixed 25 June for hearing. Mr Utomi is expected to have filed his defence before then.
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SSS’ argument against Utomi
The SSS, in the suit filed on 13 May by Akinlolu Kehinde, SAN, contended that the move by Mr Utomi was intended to create chaos and destabilise the country.
It argued that not only was the planned “shadow government” an aberration, but that it would constitute a grave attack on the constitution and a threat to the democratically elected government that is currently in place.
It expressed concern that such a structure, styled as a “shadow government,” if left unchecked, may incite political unrest, cause inter-group tensions, and embolden other unlawful actors or separatist entities to replicate similar parallel arrangements, all of which would pose a grave threat to national security.
What SSS wants the court to do
The plaintiff, therefore, urged the court to declare the “shadow government” or “shadow cabinet” being planned by Mr Utomi and his associates as “unconstitutional and amounts to an attempt to create a parallel authority not recognised by the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended).”
It is also sought a declaration that “under Sections 1(1), 1(2) and 14(2)(a) of the Constitution, the establishment or operation of any governmental authority or structure outside the provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended) is unconstitutional, null, and void.”
The SSS asked the court to issue an order of perpetual injunction, restraining Mr Utomi, his agents and associates “from further taking any steps towards the establishment or operation of a “shadow government”, “shadow cabinet” or any similar entity not recognised by the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended).”
The SSS, in its grounds of argument, hinged its prayers on the fact that Section 1(1) of the Constitution declares its supremacy and binding force on all persons and authorities in Nigeria.
It added that Section 1(2) prohibits the governance of Nigeria or any part thereof except in accordance with the provisions of the constitution.
According to the SSS, Section 14(2Xa) states that sovereignty belongs to the people of Nigeria, from whom the government derives all its powers and authority through the constitution.
It contended that Mr Utomi’s proposed shadow government lacked constitutional recognition and authority, contravening the above mentioned provisions.
The plaintiff further stated in a supporting affidavit that it is the principal domestic intelligence and security agency of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, statutorily mandated to detect and prevent threats to Nigeria’s internal security, including subversive activities capable of undermining national unity, peace, and constitutional order.
The SSS added that it is statutorily empowered to safeguard Nigeria’s internal security and prevent threats to the lawful authority of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and its constituent institutions.
It stated that it has monitored, “through intelligence reports and open source material, public statements and interviews granted by the defendant, Professor Patrick Utomi, in which he announced the purported establishment of what he termed a ‘shadow government’ or ‘shadow cabinet,’ comprising of several persons that make up its ‘Minister.’
“The ‘shadow government’ or ‘shadow cabinet’ is an unregistered and unrecognised body claiming to operate as an alternative government, contrary to the provision of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended).
“The defendant (Utomi), through public statements, social media, and other platforms, has announced the formation of this body with the intent to challenge the legitimacy of the democratically elected government of Nigeria.
Members of Utomi’s ‘Shadow cabinet’
“While inaugurating the ‘shadow cabinet’, the defendant stated that it is made up of the Ombudsman and Good Governance portfolio to be manned by Dele Farotimi; the Policy Delivery Unit Team consisting of Oghene Momoh, Cheta Nwanze, Daniel Ikuonobe, Halima Ahmed, David Okonkwo and Obi Ajuga; and the council of economic advisers.
“Based on the intelligence gathered by the plaintiff, the activities and statements made by the defendant and his associates are capable of misleading segments of the Nigerian public, weakening confidence in the legitimacy of the elected government, and fuelling public disaffection,” the SSS said.
The SSS said in the discharge of its statutory duties, it had gathered intelligence confirming that the defendant’s actions pose a clear and present danger to Nigeria’s constitutional democracy.
READ ALSO: SSS sues Utomi over ‘shadow government’
“The defendant’s actions amount to an attempt to usurp or mimic executive authority, contrary to Sections 1(1), 1(2), and 14(2Xa) of the 1999 Constitution (As Amended), which exclusively vests governance in institutions duly created under the constitution and through democratic elections.
“The Federal Government of Nigeria has made several efforts to engage the defendant to dissuade him from this unconstitutional path, including statements made by the Minister of Information, but the defendant has remained defiant.”
The agency said it would be in the interest of justice, national security and the rule of law for the court to declare the existence and operations of the defendant unconstitutional and illegal.
A shadow government is a practice, mostly in a parliamentary system of government, where opposition politicians come together to form an imaginary government with the intent of influencing the policies and actions of the government in power.
Nigeria once practised a parliamentary system, shortly after independence from Britain in 1960.
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