By Adedapo Adesanya
The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has approached the Federal High Court in Lagos for an order to compel the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to explain the whereabouts of the over N100 billion dirty and bad notes kept in its various branches since 2017.
This comes after it asked the apex bank to account for the dirty and bad notes as well as other large sums of cash awaiting examination in the vaults of the apex bank.
In a statement issued on Sunday, Mr Kolawole Oluwadare, the Deputy Director of SERAP, criticized the apex bank for not providing information about the location of the mentioned amount.
SERAP also wants the court to “direct and compel the CBN to explain the whereabouts of the N7.2 billion meant for the construction of the CBN Dutse branch building in 2010 and the N4.8 billion meant for the renovation of the CBN Abeokuta branch in 2009 and to publish the names of contractors who collected the money.”
It also wants the court to “direct and compel the CBN to explain the whereabouts of the allegedly missing outstanding loan of N1.2 billion granted to the Enugu State government in 2015 and the outstanding loan of N1.9bn granted to the Anambra state government between 2015 and 2016.”
In the suit, SERAP is arguing that “Explaining the whereabouts of the missing public funds, publishing the names of those suspected to be responsible and ensuring that they are brought to justice and the full recovery of any missing public funds would serve the public interest and end the impunity of perpetrators.”
The suit filed on behalf of SERAP by its lawyers Mr Oluwadare and Mrs Adelanke Aremo, also said, “Nigerians have the right to know the whereabouts of the public funds. Granting the reliefs sought would advance the right of Nigerians to restitution, compensation and guarantee of non-repetition.”
“Paragraph 708 of the Financial Regulations 2009 provides that, ‘on no account should payment be made for services not yet performed or for goods not yet supplied.’
“Section 35(2) of the Public Procurement Act 2007 provides that, ‘once a mobilization fee has been paid to any supplier or contractor, no further payment shall be made to the supplier or contractor without an interim performance certificate,” it added.
Modupe Gbadeyanka