BEVERLY HILLS, January 31, (THEWILL) – Transparency and accountability advocacy organization, the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has urged the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, and Speaker of House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila to “use their good offices to urgently probe and refer to appropriate anti-corruption agencies allegations that N4.4 billion of public money budgeted for the National Assembly is missing, misappropriated, diverted or stolen, as documented in three audited reports by the Office of the Auditor-General of the Federation.”
In the open letter dated 30 January 2021 and signed by SERAP Deputy Director, Kolawole Oluwadare, the organisation said: “By exercising strong and effective leadership in this matter, the National Assembly can show Nigerians that the legislative body is a proper and accountable watchdog that represents and protects the public interest, and is able to hold both itself and the government of President Muhammadu Buhari to account in the management of public resources.”
SERAP said, “If not satisfactorily addressed, these allegations would also undermine public confidence in the ability of the National Assembly to exercise its constitutional and oversight responsibilities to prevent and combat corruption, and to ensure the public interest, transparency and accountability in the management of public resources.”
SERAP noted that the ‘missing N4.4b NASS Funds’ were revealed in the Auditor-General reports for 2015, 2017 and 2018 and said that “these allegations of corruption, mismanagement and misappropriation of public funds amount to fundamental breaches of the Nigerian Constitution of 1999 [as amended] and the country’s international obligations, including under the UN Convention against Corruption and the African Union Convention on Preventing and Combating Corruption.”
The letter, according to the body, is copied to Mr Abubakar Malami SAN, Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice; Professor Bolaji Owasanoye, Chairman Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC); and Mr Mohammed Abba, Acting Chairman, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
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