SERAP Sues Akpabio Over Alleged N3.7 Trillion Budget Padding, Demands Ningi’s Reinstatement

The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has taken legal action against Senate President Mr Godswill Akpabio over the alleged N3.7 trillion budget padding in Nigeria’s 2024 budget.

SERAP filed a lawsuit at the Federal High Court in Abuja, seeking an order of mandamus to compel Akpabio to refer the alleged budget padding to appropriate anti-corruption agencies for investigation and prosecution.

Senator Abdul Ningi, who blew the whistle on the alleged budget padding, was suspended by his colleagues in the Senate last month for three months.

SERAP is also demanding Ningi’s immediate reinstatement and the implementation of transparency and accountability mechanisms to prevent the embezzlement of trillions of Naira budgeted for constituency projects.

SERAP argues that granting this application would serve the public interest, encourage whistleblowers to speak up, and improve public services and democratic accountability in the Senate and the country as a whole.

The organization emphasizes that Senator Ningi’s status as a whistleblower is not diminished, as he had reasonable grounds to believe in the accuracy of the allegations of budget padding and corruption in the Senate.

The lawsuit also highlights the negative impacts of budget padding and corruption on the fundamental interests of Nigerian citizens, as well as the country’s commitment to international obligations under the UN Convention against Corruption.

SERAP asserts that the suspension of Senator Ningi by the Senate followed a seriously flawed process and amounts to retaliation.

As Nigeria faces widespread poverty, underdevelopment, and lack of access to public goods and services, SERAP’s lawsuit aims to address the lingering problem of budget padding and corruption in the implementation of constituency projects.

The organization is also seeking to ensure probity and accountability in the budget process, as well as to build trust in democratic institutions and strengthen the rule of law.

No date has been set for the hearing of the suit.