The Court of Appeal in Abuja has overturned a previous judgment awarding ₦579 billion to Kasmal International Services in a dispute over stamp duty collections, ruling in favour of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
Delivering the lead judgment, Justice Adebukola Banjoko held that Kasmal lacked the legal standing to initiate the claim or demand commissions for stamp duty collection. She noted that the appointment of Kasmal by the Nigerian Postal Service (NIPOST) had no legal basis, declaring the agreement null from inception.
“The suit as constituted is fundamentally defective,” Banjoko stated. “You cannot give what you don’t have. There was no legal contract from the beginning between Kasmal and NIPOST, and NIPOST lacked the statutory power to collect stamp duties or to delegate such authority.”
The court also concluded that funds sought by Kasmal were public monies subject to the constitutional provisions governing the Federation Account, and therefore, could not be privately claimed or disbursed outside due process.
The judgment sets aside an earlier Federal High Court ruling that had ordered the CBN to pay over ₦579 billion, plus interest, to Kasmal. That ruling had been based on claims that Kasmal was entitled to 15% of stamp duty proceeds collected from commercial banks between 2015 and 2020.
The Appeal Court found that NIPOST had no legal authority to enter into such agreements or manage stamp duty collections, making any such arrangement with Kasmal void.
However, in a dissenting opinion, Justice Okong Abang disagreed with the majority judgment, arguing that the contractual relationship had been ratified by relevant authorities and partially fulfilled. “The doctrine of unjust enrichment frowns at a party who uses the law to retain the benefit conferred by another without offering compensation,” he said, insisting the appeal should be dismissed.
Despite the dissent, the majority ruling prevails, effectively nullifying the ₦579 billion award and affirming the CBN’s position that all stamp duties must be remitted into the Federation Account as required by law
