The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has sued 57 President Bola Tinubu.
over alleged mismanagement of N57 billion by the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Allievation
The human rights body, in a statement on its website today, said it sued Tinubu over his administration’s failure to investigate the alleged disappearance of over N57 billion from the said ministry in 2021.
The lawsuit, filed at the Federal High Court in Lagos, also names the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi as a respondent.
SERAP is urging the court to compel President Tinubu to direct Fagbemi to collaborate with anti-corruption agencies to investigate and prosecute those responsible for the missing funds.
According to SERAP, the allegations stem from the 2021 audit report recently released by the Office of the Auditor-General of the Federation.
The report highlighted several financial discrepancies, including over N54 billion meant for N-Power stipends that was not paid to beneficiaries, and over N2.6 billion allocated for the school feeding program during COVID-19 that was never executed.
The report also uncovered alleged diversion of funds earmarked for COVID-19 palliatives, payments to contractors without documentation, and personal donations amounting to millions of naira.
SERAP argued that addressing these allegations is crucial to ending impunity, recovering misappropriated funds, and ensuring justice for millions of Nigerians affected by systemic corruption.
“The allegations amount to stealing from the poor,” the organisation stated in its filing.
SERAP further emphasised that the government has a constitutional responsibility to check corruption and protect public resources.
It also cited Nigeria’s obligations under international anti-corruption conventions, including the United Nations Convention against Corruption, which mandates effective sanctions for such offenses.
No date has been set for the hearing of the case.
