The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has sued the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, over the failure of the upper legislative chamber to recall Senator Abdul Ningi suspended for whistleblowing on 2024 budget padding.
SERAP also noted that the suit is because the Senate under the leadership of Senator Akpabio has failed to refer the alleged N3.7 trillion 2024 budget padding to appropriate anti-corruption agencies for investigation and prosecution.
In a statement issued on Sunday by SERAP’s Deputy Director, Kolawole Oluwadare, Akpabio was sued for himself and on behalf of all members of the Senate.
SaharaReporters in March reported that Akpabio indicated that the Senate was considering recalling Ningi.
Akpabio while fielding questions from reporters on arrival from the Inter-Parliamentary Union meeting in Geneva, Switzerland had said “I believe that in a few days, he will join us.”
Ningi had in a letter through his counsel, Femi Falana (SAN), given the Senate President Akpabio seven days to recall him or face legal action.
SaharaReporters had reported that Ningi was suspended for three months after the Senate debated his interview with the BBC where he alleged that the budget passed by the National Assembly for the 2024 fiscal year was N25 trillion while the one being implemented by the Presidency was N28.7 trillion.
Following the the Senate’s failure to recall Ningi, SERAP in the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/452/2024 filed last Friday at the Federal High Court, Abuja, SERAP is seeking “An order of mandamus to direct and compel Mr Akpabio to refer the alleged N3.7 trillion budget padding to appropriate anti-corruption agencies for investigation and prosecution of suspected perpetrators.”
SERAP is further seeking: “An order of mandamus to direct and compel Mr Akpabio to immediately take steps to ensure the reinstatement of whistleblower Abdul Ningi who was suspended from the Senate over his allegations that the lawmakers padded the 2024 budget by irregularly inserting projects worth N3.7 trillion.
“An order of mandamus to direct and compel Mr Akpabio to put in place transparency and accountability mechanisms to ensure that the trillions of Naira budgeted for constituency projects are not embezzled, misappropriated or diverted into private pockets.”
SERAP argued in the suit that granting “this application would serve the public interest, encourage whistleblowers to speak up, improve public services, and ensure transparency and accountability in the management of public resources”.
It said, “The allegations by Senator Ningi amount to public interest disclosures and can contribute to strengthening transparency and democratic accountability in the Senate in particular and the country as a whole.
“Suspension of Senator Ningi by the Senate followed a seriously flawed process and it amounts to retaliation.”
SERAP said that “Senator Ningi’s status as a whistleblower is not diminished even if the perceived threat to the public interest has not materialised, since he would seem to have reasonable grounds to believe in the accuracy of the allegations of budget padding and corruption in the Senate.”
SERAP in the suit filed by its lawyers, Kolawole Oluwadare and Mrs Adelanke Aremo, said, “It is in the public interest and the interest of justice to grant this application. No whistleblower should ever be penalised simply for making a public interest disclosure.
“Directing Mr Akpabio to refer the allegations to appropriate anticorruption agencies would help to address the lingering problem of budget padding and corruption in the implementation of constituency projects.
“Directing Mr Akpabio to refer the allegations to the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) and Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) would also ensure probity and accountability in the budget process.
“Investigating and prosecuting the allegations of budget padding and corruption would end the impunity of perpetrators. It would build trust in democratic institutions with the ultimate aim of strengthening the rule of law.
“Years of allegations of budget padding and corruption in the implementation of constituency projects have contributed to widespread poverty, underdevelopment and lack of access to public goods and services.”
SERAP said, “According to our information, Senator Abdul Ningi, the former Chairperson of the Northern Senators Forum (NSF), recently told BBC Hausa that the lawmakers sought the service of a private auditor and discovered irregularities in the budget.
“Senator Ningi reportedly said, ‘For example, we had a budget of N28 trillion but after our thorough checks, we found out that it was a budget of N25 trillion. How and where did we get the additional N3 trillion from, what are we spending it for?’
“According to BudgIT, a total of 7,447 projects culminating in N2.24tn were indiscriminately inserted in the 2024 budget by the National Assembly. 281 projects worth N491bn, and 3,706 projects within the range of N100–500m, worth 759bn were inserted in the budget.”
However, no date has been fixed for the hearing of the suit.
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