BEVERLY HILLS, May 30, (THEWILL) – Justice Mohammed Idris of a Federal High Court sitting in Lagos has ordered President Muhammadu Buhari to probe allegations of padding and stealing of about N481 billion from the 2016 budget by some principal officers of the National Assembly.
Idris also instructed the President to direct Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice Abubakar Malami (SAN), and/or appropriate anti-corruption agencies to immediately commence the prosecution of indicted lawmakers.
Idris gave the order in a judgment delivered in a mandamus suit filed by Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) with the defendants in the suit being the President and Malami.
SERAP claimed it received “credible information from multiple sources that the Department of State Services (DSS) and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) have completed investigation into the allegations of padding of the 2016 budget, completed their reports, and indicted some principal officers of the House of Representatives and the Senate.
The organisation also claimed to have found out that the accounts of some of the principal officers containing allegedly illicit funds were frozen, and that the case files for the prosecution of those indicted were ready.
In his ruling, Justice Idris, ordered the President to “direct the publication of the report of investigations by security and anti-corruption bodies into the alleged padding of the 2016 budget.”
He held that President Buhari in the exercise of his executive powers; has a duty to ensure compliance with the provisions of Article 22 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, and that the President is “expected to use his executive powers for the public good of Nigeria.”
Article 22 of the African Charter provides that, “All peoples shall have the right to their economic, social and cultural development with due regard to their freedom,” and that “States shall have the duty, individually or collectively, to ensure the exercise of the right to development.”
Justice Idris also granted an order directing the President to “urgently halt alleged attempt by some principal officers of the National Assembly to steal N40 billion of the N100 billion allocated by his government as ‘zonal intervention’ in the 2017 budget.”
