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By Henry Uche
Socio-Economic Rights & Accountability Project (SERAP) has vowed not to retreat from the fight against corrupt practises and quest to pursue transparency and accountability, despite resistance from some public office holders in the country.
At a press briefing in Lagos, SERAP’s Deputy Director, Oluwadare Kolawole decried the damning attitude of government officials who refuse to disclose information in line with the FOI Act of 2011. He said SERAP was still expecting the Federal Government to make public the management of all resources collected for the purpose of combating COVID-19 pandemic.
He said the Federal Government was yet to account for N320 million for the power sector in its audited report for 2016, N26.1 billion and N2.483 billion for health/allied institutions and education/research institutions, respectively.
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“All these unaccounted amounts must be made known to Nigerians. We don’t want a situation where recovered funds and loots would go back the same way they disappeared. We are saying capital no to re-looting and mismanagement of public resources, especially finance and other assets,” he said.
Kolawole alleged the Buhari’s administration had made ‘little to no progress’ in the fight against corruption, but that SERAP would leave no stone unturned in ensuring that every public office holder leads by the ethics of transparency and accountability.
He called on the World Bank to disclose and release information and documents relating to the spending of funds approved and released to Nigeria between 1999 and 2020, to improve access to regular and uninterrupted power supply, including copies of supervision reports, periodic reviews and other appropriate reports. It also demanded the bank’s role in the spending and disbursement of funds as well as specific projects on which the funds have been spent.
He challenged the National Assembly to rise above self-interest and collaborate fully with well-meaning individuals and groups in civil society.
