By Chioma Obinagwam
The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has dragged Nigeria’s Senate President (Upper Chamber), Ahmad Lawan, and Speaker of House of Representatives (Lower Chamber), Femi Gbajabiamila at Federal High Court, Abuja over alleged missing N4.4 billion National Assembly (NASS) fund.
Confiance News gathered from the official Twitter handle of SERAP on Monday.
“SERAP has filed a lawsuit against @DrAhmadLawan and @femigbaja over their failure to probe, and to refer to appropriate anti-corruption agencies allegations that N4.4bn of public money budgeted for @nassnigeria is missing, misappropriated, diverted or stolen…as documented in three annual audited reports by the Office of the Auditor-General of the Federation,” it tweeted.
SERAP is a Non-governmental organisation(NGO) and an advocacy organisation devoted to promoting transparency, accountability and respect for socio-economic rights in Nigeria.
In the suit filed at the weekend, SERAP is seeking “an order of mandamus directing and compelling Lawan, Gbajabiamila and National Assembly to perform their constitutional oversight functions to ensure prompt and transparent investigation into the allegation that N4.4 billion budgeted for the National Assembly may be missing and unaccounted for.”
The suit followed publication of annual audited reports for 2015, 2017 and 2018 in which the Auditor-General of the Federation raised “concerns about alleged diversion and misappropriation of public funds, sought the recovery of any missing funds, and asked that the evidence of recovery should be forwarded to his office.”
SERAP, which also prides itself as a non-partisan organisation stated that the suit followed the publication of annual audited reports for 2015, 2017 and 2018 in which the Auditor-General of the Federation raised concerns about alleged diversion and misappropriation of public funds, sought the recovery of any missing funds and asked that the evidence of recovery should be forwarded to his office.
It noted that the Auditor-General noted in his 2015 report that the National Assembly account was spent N8,800,000.00 as unauthorised overdraft, contrary to Financial Regulations 710.
Again, SERAP pointed that The National Assembly also reportedly spent N115,947,016.00 without any documents. Another N158,193,066.00 spent as cash advances to 17 staff between January and June 2015 is yet to be retired, among others.
It also stated that going by the Auditor-General’s Report for 2017, the House of Representatives reportedly spent ₦95,212,250.00 without due process and without any documents.
“Transparency and accountability in the management of public resources and wealth is essential for promoting development, people’s welfare and well-being, and their access to basic public services, as well as good governance and the rule of law.
“The National Assembly has legal responsibility to ensure that the serious allegations of corruption and mismanagement documented by the Office of the Auditor-General of the Federation are promptly, independently, thoroughly and transparently investigated, and to end the culture of impunity that is fuelling these allegations,” it emphasized.
