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| GODSWILL AKPABIO & TAJUDEED ABBAS |
•May head to court
The President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, have been called upon to make known the amount of the monthly running costs of millions of naira currently being paid to and received by members of the National Assembly (NA) and the spending details of any such running costs.
The call emanated from the Lagos-based rights group, Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), which also requested that the duo should put an end to the alleged practice by the NA of fixing its salaries, allowances, and running costs in conformity with the 1999 Constitution (as amended) and the country’s international obligations.
In a statement signed by its deputy director, Kolawole Oluwadare, the group particularly asked the leadership of the NA to put an end to the alleged practice of paying running costs into the personal accounts of lawmakers and to refer the alleged misuse or mismanagement of the running costs to appropriate anti-corruption agencies for investigation and prosecution where there is relevant admissible evidence.
In the statement, SERAP tasked the NA to “Promptly disclose the total amount of running costs that have so far been paid to and received by the lawmakers and to ensure the return of any misused or mismanaged public funds.”
Referring to its letter dated August 17, 2024, the human rights organisation posited “We are concerned about the practice by the lawmakers of fixing their salaries, allowances and running costs, and the opacity and in the spending of millions of naira in running costs by lawmakers.
“The constitutional oath of office of lawmakers requires them to ensure transparency and accountability in the exact amounts of salaries, allowances and running costs they receive.”
The letter, read in part: “The provisions of Paragraph N, Section 32 (d) of the Third Schedule to the Nigerian Constitution makes it unlawful for the National Assembly to fix its salaries, allowances and running costs.
“The allegations that members of the National Assembly are fixing their salaries, allowances and running costs are entirely inconsistent and incompatible with the constitutional oath of office and the object and purpose of the UN Convention against Corruption, to which Nigeria is a state party.
“We would be grateful if the recommended measures are taken within seven days of the receipt and/or publication of this letter.
“If we have not heard from you by then, SERAP shall take all appropriate legal actions to compel you and other members of the National Assembly to comply with our request in the public interest.”
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