Court Orders Buhari’s Minister, Sadia Umar-Farouk To Account For N729Billion ‘Payments To Millions Of Poor Nigerians’

The court moreover ordered the aged minister to form the listing and particulars of the beneficiaries who bought the payments, the change of states covered and the payments per voice.

A Federal High Court in Lagos has ordered Ms Sadia Umar-Farouk, aged Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disasters Management and Social Pattern to yarn for the payments of N729 billion to 24.3 million shaded Nigerians for six months.

The court moreover ordered the aged minister to form the listing and particulars of the beneficiaries who bought the payments, the change of states covered and the payments per voice.

The judgment changed into delivered final month by Hon. Justice Deinde Isaac Dipeolu following a Freedom of Info swimsuit numbered FHC/L/CS/853/2021, brought by the Socio-Economic Rights And Accountability Mission. SERAP stated it got the licensed unswerving replica of the judgment final Friday.

In his judgment, Justice Dipeolu held that, “The aged minister is compelled by the provisions of the Freedom of Info Act to give files to any particular person at the side of SERAP.

“I subsequently grant an mutter of mandamus directing and compelling the minister to form the spending particulars of N729 billion to 24.3 million shaded Nigerians in 2021.”

Justice Dipeolu ordered the minister to “provide SERAP with particulars of how the beneficiaries were chosen and the mechanisms for the payments to the beneficiaries.”

Justice Dipeolu moreover ordered the minister to “existing the rationale for paying N5,000 to 24.3 million shaded Nigerians, which interprets to 5 percent of Nigeria’s finances of N13.6 trillion for 2021.”

Justice Dipeolu moreover acknowledged that, “The minister didn’t give any clarification for the refusal to voice the particulars sought by SERAP. SERAP has reeled out the related sections of the Freedom of Info Act 2011 that the minister contravened and has based on sections 20 and 25(1) of the Act prayed this Court for an mutter of mandamus to whisper and compel the minister to form the records sought.”

Justice Dipeolu brushed off the objections raised by the minister’s counsel and upheld SERAP’s arguments. As a end result, the court entered judgment in favour of SERAP against the minister.

Justice Dipeolu’s judgment, dated 27 June, 2024, read in half: “The put a statute clearly affords for a particular act to be accomplished or conducted in a particular blueprint, failure to make the act as equipped will now not handiest be interpreted as a delinquent conduct but will be interpreted as now not complying with the statutory provision.

“The minister filed a preliminary objection to this swimsuit dated the 4th of October 2022 and a counter-affidavit to SERAP’s scramble on look. I will first take care of the minister’s preliminary objection because it bothers on the jurisdiction of this Court to entertain this swimsuit.

“The grounds upon which the preliminary objection changed into filed are: whether or now not this swimsuit is now not incompetent having now not been commenced within 30 days after SERAP’s request for files changed into deemed to were denied.

“Having now not complied with the provision of allotment 20 of the Freedom of Info, whether or now not this Court can judge jurisdiction to entertain SERAP’s application.

“As arguments on both points, the minister’s counsel submitted that by the provision of allotment 4,7(4) and 20 of the Freedom of Info Act, subject to unswerving exceptions throughout the Act, a public institution has 7 days to grant a request for files, failure of which would possibly per chance well maybe be deemed denial.

“SERAP’s request changed into deemed denied on sixth July, which is the expiration of seven days. Attributable to this truth, SERAP has 30 days pursuant to allotment 20 of the Act to follow to this Court.

“SERAP’s 30 days within which to bring this swimsuit expired on fifth of August 2021, even as the scramble on look changed into filed on the Ninth of November 2021, originate air the 30 days stipulated by the Act. As a end result, this swimsuit is statute barred.

“In response, SERAP’s counsel argued that this swimsuit changed into now not commenced through the scramble of look dated Eighth November 2021. This swimsuit changed into initiated by a scramble exparte dated thirteenth July 2021 but filed on the 15th of July 2021, after the expiration of the 7 days duration required of the minister to answer to the FOI request by SERAP.

“Right here’s in compliance with allotment 20 of the Freedom of Info Act and Advise 34 Rule 3(1) of the Federal High Court (Civil Direction of) Tips 2019.

“The above are the submissions of counsel as regards the preliminary objection by the minister. I have faith SERAP’s counsel that the minister didn’t close a unswerving search of the casefile sooner than submitting the preliminary objection.”

The court renowned that SERAP commenced the swimsuit through a scramble ex parte dated July 13, 2021 but filed on July 15, 2021, “which is neatly throughout the time to file this scramble after the denial of the records requested from the minister”.

It held that “SERAP complied with allotment 20 of the Freedom of Info Act in submitting this swimsuit. Attributable to this truth, this swimsuit is now not statute barred and I push apart the minister’s preliminary objection”.

SERAP deputy director Kolawole Oluwadare stated: “This ground-breaking judgment is a victory for transparency and accountability in the spending of public funds.”

Femi Falana, SAN stated on the judgment: “SERAP deserves the commendation of all neatly-meaning those that have agonised over reviews of systemic corruption in the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disasters Management and Social Pattern and in several MDAs.

“Right here’s one amongst essentially the most patriotic public curiosity litigation ever undertaken in Nigeria. We call on the Tinubu govt to make exhaust of the judgment as the basis for comprehensively addressing cases of corruption in the ministry and bringing to justice those suspected to be responsible along with to recovering proceeds of corruption.”

In the letter dated 6 July 2024 despatched to President Bola Tinubu on the judgment, and signed by SERAP deputy director, Kolawole Oluwadare, the group stated, “We scoot you to level to your expressed commitment to the rule of law by at as soon as obeying and respecting the judgment of the Court.”

SERAP’s letter, read in half: “We scoot you to whisper the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disasters Management and Social Pattern and the predicament of job of the Licensed skilled General of the Federation to at as soon as compile and launch the spending particulars of the N729 billion as ordered by the court.

“The quick enforcement and implementation of the judgment by your govt will be a victory for the rule of law, transparency and accountability in the governance processes and management of public assets at the side of the N729 billion.”