The Socio‑Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has filed a lawsuit at the ECOWAS Court of Justice, suing President Bola Tinubu’s administration for failing to publish the long‑awaited forensic audit report on the ₦6 trillion allegedly misappropriated from the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).
SERAP, joined by four concerned Nigerians; Prince Taiwo Aiyedatiwa, Chief Jude Igbogifurotogu Pulemote, Ben Omietimi Tariye, and Princess Elizabeth Egbe lodged the case last Friday in Abuja.
They argue that withholding the report which was commissioned in 2019 under former president Muhammadu Buhari violates the public’s right to information and undermines transparency.
“We’ve sued the Tinubu administration at the ECOWAS Court of Justice over the failure to publish the forensic report on the NDDC documenting allegations of missing ₦6 trillion in the commission,” SERAP said in a post on X.
The forensic audit, initiated by Buhari amid mounting corruption concerns within the NDDC, has reportedly been concluded. However, the results remain unpublished by successive governments.
The suit, ECW/CCJ/APP/35/25, asserts that the government’s silence amounts to “a fundamental breach of the country’s international human rights obligations.”
Complicating matters further, the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, recently alleged that a former minister’s wife received ₦48 billion in twelve months “to train Niger Delta women.”
Plaintiffs’ counsel contends:
“The Nigerian government has violated our right to know the truth about the corruption allegations documented in the NDDC forensic report. The obstruction of the publication of the report is perpetrating impunity and the cover‑up of the allegations.”
They are now seeking:
- A court order compelling the government to release the forensic report;
- An order for enhanced transparency and accountability in the management of NDDC funds.
As stated in the legal filing:
“Implicit in freedom of expression is the public’s right to open access to information and to know what governments are doing on their behalf… Without that, truth would languish and people’s participation in government would remain fragmented and illusory.”
The plaintiffs argue:
“The Nigerian government has failed and refused to publish the NDDC forensic report and has failed to provide any reasons or grounds for withholding the report from the plaintiffs and the Nigerian public.”
They urge the court to hold the government accountable, insisting:
“The Nigerian government has the legal obligations to guarantee and ensuring transparency and access to information regarding the NDDC forensic report as a component of the right to seek, receive, and impart information of all kinds.”
