Nigeria, Sept. 10 -- The Court of Appeal in Abuja, on Friday, ordered the Rivers and Lagos state governments to stay action on their bids to collect Value Added Tax (VAT) pending the resolution of the legal dispute on the matter.

A three-man panel of the appellate court ordered that the enforcement of the judgment of the Federal High Court, Port Harcourt, latched on to by the state governments be put on hold.

Haruna Tsanami, the judge who delivered the lead ruling of the panel, also suspended the operation of the law passed by the Rivers State House of Assembly and assented to by Governor Nyesom Wike, for the collection of VAT by the State government.

The court held that since parties had submitted themselves to the jurisdiction of the...