President Bola Tinubu has been urged by the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) to order the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, and the relevant anti-corruption agencies, to look into how the billions of naira that Borno State has been collecting for the Ecological Fund since 2001 have been spent.
Also, SERAP is calling for an investigation into the N816 million that the state collected between January and June of 2024.
According to SERAP, anyone accused of engaging in corruption or mismanaging environmental funds should be prosecuted if there is enough legally acceptable proof, and any money obtained through corruption should be returned in full.
SERAP claimed in the letter on Saturday, which was signed by SERAP deputy director Kolawole Oluwadare, read as follows:
“Your government has a legal obligation to address the prevalence of flooding across the country and its effect on people, and to ensure that the money meant to stop the floods is not lost to corruption.
“The devastation in Borno highlights your government’s obligation to promote and ensure transparency and accountability in the spending of ecological funds by all tiers of government and emergency management agencies.
“We would be grateful if the recommended measures are taken within seven days of the receipt and/or publication of this letter.
“If we have not heard from you by then, SERAP shall consider appropriate legal actions to compel your government to comply with our request in the public interest.
“Your government has legal obligations to ensure protection of the rights of flood victims in Borno and elsewhere in the country.”
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cc: Daily Post Ng
