A Federal High Court sitting in Lagos has ordered former Minister of Finance Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and the Federal Government to provide information on how N30 trillion was spent. The cash represents some accruable income to the Federal Government during the last four years of the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan. Justice Ibrahim Buba gave the order while delivering judgment in a Freedom of Information suit brought by Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) against the defendants.
SERAP’s suit followed revelations by a former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Prof. Charles Soludo, that at least N30 trillion “has either been stolen or unaccounted for, or grossly mismanaged over the last few years under the Coordinating Minister of the Economy and Minister of Finance Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala’s watch”.
A statement issued yesterday by SERAP’s Deputy Director, Olukayode Majekodunmi, stated that while delivering judgment in the matter, Justice Buba said: “Mrs. Okonjo-Iweala and the Federal Government have no legally justifiable reason for refusing to provide SERAP with the information requested for.
