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The lawsuit is over “the failure to end the apparently unlawful practice by the National Assembly of fixing its allowances and running costs, and the failure to account for the monthly running costs paid to members”.
The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has filed a lawsuit against the Senate President, Mr Godswill Akpabio and Speaker of House of Representatives, Mr Tajudeen Abbas.
The lawsuit is over “the failure to end the apparently unlawful practice by the National Assembly of fixing its allowances and running costs, and the failure to account for the monthly running costs paid to members”.
The organisation sued Mr Akpabio and Mr Abbas for themselves and on behalf of all members of the National Assembly.
According to reports, former President Olusegun Obasanjo recently alleged that the lawmakers fix their own salaries and allowances, contrary to the recommendation of the Revenue Mobilisation Fiscal Allocation Commission (RMAFC).
In the suit numbered FHC/ABJ/CS/1289/2024 filed last Friday at the Federal High Court, Abuja, SERAP is seeking “an order of mandamus to direct and compel Mr Akpabio and Mr Abbas to end the apparently unlawful practice of the National Assembly fixing its remuneration and allowances termed as ‘running cost'”.
SERAP is also seeking “an order of mandamus to direct and compel Mr Akpabio and Mr Abbas to disclose the exact amount of the monthly running costs being paid to and received by the lawmakers, and the spending details of any such running costs”.
SERAP is also seeking “an order of mandamus to direct and compel Mr Akpabio and Mr Abbas to end the alleged practice of paying remuneration and allowances termed as ‘running costs’ into the personal accounts of lawmakers.”
In the suit, SERAP argues that: “The provisions of paragraph N, section 32(d) of the Third Schedule to the Nigerian Constitution 1999 [as amended] clearly make it unlawful for the National Assembly to fix its salaries, allowances and running costs.”
It also argues that “the alleged practice of paying running costs into the personal accounts of lawmakers is a fundamental breach of Rule 713 of the Federal Government Financial Regulations, which provides that ‘public money shall not be paid into a private bank account.'”
The suit filed on behalf of SERAP by its lawyers, Kolawole Oluwadare, Andrew Nwankwo, and Ms Blessing Ogwuche, reads in part: “Directing and compelling the lawmakers to account for and return any misused or mismanaged running costs they collected would build trust in democratic institutions and strengthen the rule of law.
“SERAP is seeking: an order of mandamus to direct and compel Mr Akpabio and Mr Abbas to refer the allegations on the misuse of the running costs received by members to appropriate anticorruption agencies for investigation and prosecution where there is relevant admissible evidence.”
It further reads, “According to our information, members of the National Assembly are currently fixing their own salaries, allowances and running costs. The running costs are reportedly paid directly into the personal accounts of members.
“Senator Kawu Sumaila, representing Kano South Senatorial District, recently disclosed in an interview with BBC Hausa that each Nigerian senator earns at least N21 million monthly in running costs, salaries, and allowances.
“Mr Sumaila reportedly said, ‘My monthly salary is less than N1 million. After deductions, the figure comes down to a little over N600,000. Given the increase effected in the Senate, each senator gets N21 million every month as running cost.'”
No date has been fixed for the hearing of the suit.
