A Federal High Court in Abuja has mandated the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari to account for the use of a $460m Chinese loan that was meant to fund the failed Abuja Closed-Circuit Television (CCTV) project. Hon. Justice Emeka Nwite gave the order while issuing judgement in a Freedom of Information lawsuit brought forward by the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP).
The lawsuit came after the then Minister of Finance, Zainab Ahmed, announced in 2019 that Nigeria was servicing the loan with no explanation on the status of the project. Justice Nwite stated that there was “a reasonable cause of action against the government,” adding that accounting for the $460m Chinese loan was in the interest of the public.
The court also directed the Buhari administration to “publish the total amount of money paid to Chinese and local companies and contractors and specific details of the names of the companies and contractors and status of the implementation of the project.” Justice Nwite further stated that the Minister of Finance was in charge of the nation’s finance and should have been aware of the funds paid to the contractors for the Abuja CCTV contract and the money for the construction of the headquarters of the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB).
The court also required the government to substantiate whether the N1.5 billion Naira paid for the failed contract, meant to build the headquarters of the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB), was part of another loan taken out from China. “SERAP’s core objectives are to promote human rights, transparency, and accountability and anti-corruption in Nigeria,” the judgement read.
