A FEDERAL High Court sitting in Gombe has ordered the Gombe Geographic Information Systems (GOGIS) and its former Director-General, Kabiru Usman Hassan, to release documents relating to the redesign of the Shehu Abubakar District Layout to an applicant who sought the records under the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act, 2011.
News Point Nigeria reports that the order was made by Justice Amina Aliyu Mohammed, who also awarded ₦200,000 in costs in favour of the applicant, Nafi’u Abubakar, after finding that GOGIS failed to respond to his Freedom of Information request within the time stipulated by law.
The suit arose from an FOI application dated November 9, 2025, which was received by GOGIS on December 9, 2025.
In the application, the applicant requested records relating to the redesign of the Shehu Abubakar District Layout, including documents on the procurement process, bidding records, details of the successful contractor, contract sum, payment records, letters of award and other related documents connected with the project.
Represented by Barrister M. U. Faruk, the applicant asked the court to declare that he was entitled to access the requested information and to compel GOGIS to release the documents.
He also sought ₦100 million as general damages and ₦5 million as the cost of instituting the suit. The respondents were represented by Barrister Musa Adamu Kumo.
Delivering judgment, Justice Mohammed held that the applicant’s request was validly made under the Freedom of Information Act and ruled that the respondents failed to establish that they served their purported response on the applicant or complied with the statutory seven-day period prescribed by the Act.
The court further held that GOGIS breached Sections 4 and 7 of the Freedom of Information Act and, by operation of law, was deemed to have refused the request.
Consequently, the court declared that the applicant was entitled to the requested records and ordered GOGIS and its former Director-General to release all relevant documents within 14 days.
Justice Mohammed further directed that where any of the requested records are unavailable or exempt from disclosure, the respondents must provide the applicant with written reasons for the refusal, citing the relevant provisions of the Freedom of Information Act.
The court, however, declined the applicant’s claim for ₦100 million in general damages, holding that the primary objective of the Freedom of Information Act is to promote public access to information, transparency and accountability rather than to punish public institutions through monetary awards.
The judge also observed that the applicant failed to establish any special injury or financial loss that would justify the award of general damages.
However, Justice Mohammed awarded ₦200,000 as costs against GOGIS and its former Director-General in favour of the applicant.