The Federal High Court in Lagos has ruled that the government of former Delta State governor, Ifeanyi Okowa, must fully disclose the spending information of over N200bn public funds.
These funds were collected from the Universal Basic Education Commission and allocations from the Federation Accounts.
The court, presided over by Honourable Justice Daniel Osiagor, issued the judgment on July 17.
As a result, Delta State Governor Sheriff Oborevwori has been ordered to reveal the details of budgetary allocations and actual spending by the Okowa government during the period between 2015 and 2019.
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This judgment came about as a result of a Freedom of Information suit, with reference number FHC/L/CS/803/2019, filed by the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project.
Justice Osiagor, in his ruling, acknowledged that SERAP has a legitimate legal right to inquire about and be informed of how public institutions handle public funds.
He emphasized that every citizen has a responsibility to demand transparency and accountability in the governance of such institutions.
Based on this, Justice Osiagor directed the Delta State government to disclose the expenditure details of the Okowa administration, including how they spent over N7.28 billion received from UBEC between 2015 and 2017, as well as N213 billion received from the Federation Accounts Allocation Committee in 2018, at an average of N17.8 billion per month.
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SERAP initiated this legal action after the case of seven-year-old Success Adegor, who was sent home from school due to her parents’ inability to pay an unlawful school fee/levy of N900.
