Subsidy - SERAP sues Tinubu for failing to disclose spending information on N400 billion in savings.

The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project, SERAP, has filed a complaint in Federal High Court against President Bola Tinubu for failing to disclose how much money was saved from fuel subsidies on Premium Motor Spirit, or PMS, also known as gasoline.

According to SERAP, the lawsuit arose as a result of allegations that the Federal Government had saved N400 billion in the four weeks following the implementation of the program to end gasoline subsidies.

SERAP is requesting "an order of the court to direct and compel Tinubu to publish details of spending of about N400 billion saved as a result of the removal of subsidy on petrol on May 29, 2023," according to a statement released on Sunday in Lagos by Deputy Director Kolawole Oluwadareand of SERAP.

According to SERAP, the lawsuit arose as a result of allegations that the Federal Government had saved N400 billion in the four weeks following the implementation of the program to end gasoline subsidies.

In the lawsuit filed last week at the Federal High Court in Lagos under the case number FHC/L/CS/1514/2023, SERAP is requesting "an order of mandamus to direct and compel President Tinubu to provide details of the plans on how the savings from the removal of subsidy on petrol, including specific projects on which the funds would be spent."

"An order of mandamus to require President Tinubu to disclose specifics of the safeguards put in place to ensure that the savings from the removal of the gasoline subsidy are not diverted into private pockets."

Nigerians have a right to know how their savings are used, according to SERAP, which claimed this in the lawsuit. The likelihood of corruption in the use of the funds would be decreased by disclosing the expenditure information of the savings.

"The Tinubu government has a legal obligation to ensure that the savings from the elimination of the subsidy on gasoline are spent exclusively for the benefit of the 137 million low-income Nigerians who are bearing the brunt of the elimination."

Kolawole Oluwadare, Adelanke Aremo, and Valentina Adegoke on behalf of SERAP filed the lawsuit, in which they claim that "Opacity in the spending of the savings from subsidy removal would have negative impacts on the fundamental interests of the citizens and the public interest."

Article 9 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights, Section 39 of the Nigerian Constitution, the Freedom of Information Act, and Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights were cited as justifications for the action being taken before the court.

"The Tinubu government has a legal obligation to protect individuals against the threat posed to human rights by the removal of subsidy on petrol and to effectively address the aftermath of subsidy removal," the group continued.