Federation and Minister of Justice, urging him to use his good offices
and leadership to: “move swiftly to develop and adopt public registers
for corrupt state governors and other high-ranking public officials
charged with and convicted of grand corruption since the return of
democracy in 1999.
SERAP said: “We urge you to ensure that the public registers contain
accurate data and are fully accessible and open to public scrutiny.
Aspects such as the scope of the registers, who to include in the
registers, and eligibility for removal from the registers, can be
discussed in a consultative session with the civil society and other
stakeholders.”
In the letter dated 23 August 2019 and signed by SERAP deputy director
Kolawole Oluwadare, the organization said: “The proposed registers are
far from severe, and would be a proportionate response to the grave
crime of grand corruption and impunity of perpetrators and have a
deterrent effect. There can be no reasonable expectation of privacy in
matters already exposed to public viewing such as prior arrest, charges
and conviction records.”
The organization said: “Public registers for high-ranking officials
facing corruption charges and those convicted of corruption would be a
pivotal moment in the fight against corruption by the government of
President Muhammadu Buhari and the damage caused by graft to citizens’
human rights and Nigeria’s democratic process.”
SERAP also said: “The proposed registers for corrupt officials would
serve a public interest purpose similar in some respects to the recently
disclosed names and details by the United States Department of Justice
of 80 defendants, most of whom are Nigerians, that have been charged
with conspiracy to commit fraud, money laundering, aggravated identity
theft and other charges.”
The letter read in part: “SERAP is concerned that corruption is so
pervasive across many states and at several levels of governance and has
remained a constant feature of Nigeria’s political scene since 1999,
turning public service for many into a kind of criminal enterprise.
Grand corruption has continued to fuel political violence, deny millions
of Nigerians access to clean water, and even the most basic health and
education services, and reinforcing police abuses and other widespread
patterns of human rights violations.”
“The lack of public registers containing detailed information about
high-ranking public officials charged with and convicted of corruption
since 1999 has allowed many politicians—often with impunity–to use
apparently illicitly acquired wealth to fund political parties, build
corrupt patronage networks, thereby preventing fair access to economic
and political power, serving to further the wealth and power of ruling
elites, and exacerbating inequality.”
“Registers would help protect the public from corrupt officials and
their collaborators and improve the ideal of representative government,
as it would assist the citizens to properly exercise their right to
participate in their own government.”
“Public registers would improve transparency by making it easier for the
public to track the government’s fight against corruption and make the
government as open as possible in its anti-corruption efforts. SERAP
urges you to push for legislation that will require public officials
charged with and convicted of grand corruption at the federal, state and
local government levels to put their names in the public registers.”
“Everyone has the right of access to any information held by the state
or by any other person, which is reasonably required for the exercise or
protection of any rights, including those of citizens’ right to human
dignity and freedom from corruption.”
“Registers for corrupt officials would also address the paucity of
information about politicians and others complicit in the mismanagement
of the country’s natural wealth and resources, with devastating
consequences for citizens’ enjoyment of their human rights.”
“Many citizens lack knowledge and awareness of those charged with and
convicted of grand corruption, and those that are complicit in the
mismanagement of the country’s wealth and resources.”
“We hope that the aspects highlighted will help guide your actions in
developing and adopting public registers for corrupt officials and
proposing legislation on the matter, as appropriate. We would be happy
to provide further information or to discuss any of these issues in more
detail with you.”