Muhammadu Buhari, Vice-President Professor Yemi Osinbajo, 36 state
governors and their deputies to “make public details of their assets,
specifically property and income, contained in their asset declaration
forms submitted to the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) since assuming
office.”
In the suit number FHC/ABJ/CS/65/2020 filed last Friday, SERAP is
seeking: “an order for leave to apply for judicial review and an order
of mandamus to direct and/or compel President Buhari, Vice-President
Osinbajo, 36 state governors and their deputies to make public their
summary of assets; disclose whether they have had any reason to review
and update their asset declarations submitted to the CCB, and if the
declarations have been made as constitutionally and statutorily
required.”
SERAP is also seeking: “an order to compel President Buhari,
Vice-President Osinbajo, 36 state governors and their deputies to
disclose whether they have received any confirmation of the verification
of their asset declarations by the CCB and to disclose whether they have
taken any steps to encourage members of their cabinet to also submit
their asset declarations to the CCB, and to make such declarations
public.”
The suit followed SERAP’s Freedom of Information (FoI) requests dated 3
January 2020, expressing concern that: “The non-public disclosure by
public officials of their summary of assets undermines the effectiveness
and integrity of the constitutional and statutory obligations to submit
asset declarations, especially given that declarations are designed to
curb grand corruption, and weakens the public trust in the asset
declaration regimes.”
According to SERAP, only two states—Lagos state and Niger state—have
responded to its FoI requests. But both states declined the requests to
make public the assets of their governors and deputies, on the ground
that “the FoI Act is inapplicable to state governments, their agencies
and officials, and that only houses of assembly of states are
constitutionally empowered to make laws on public records of states.”
Also, while reacting to SERAP FoI request to President Buhari, Mr Femi
Adesina, Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, had
said: “SERAP asking the president to declare publicly, on the basis of
what law? The president will do what the law requires of him and what
the law requires is that he should declare his asset which he has done.
Declaring publicly is not in our laws; it can only be a voluntary
thing.”
SERAP is also seeking: “a declaration that the failure of President
Buhari, Vice-President Osinbajo, 36 state governors and their deputies
to provide SERAP with the requested information on their assets
constitutes a breach of SERAP’s right under the FoI Act, 2011, and such
further order(s) the Honourable Court may deem fit to make in the
circumstances.”
The suit filed on behalf of SERAP by its counsel Kolawole Oluwadare,
read in part: “The advantages that the general public would gain from
being informed about the summary of assets declarations submitted to the
CCB outweigh any perceived privacy or inconvenience if the court orders
the details to be made public as sought by SERAP.”
“By a combined reading of the Constitution of Nigeria 1999 (as amended),
the FoI Act, and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights,
President Buhari, Vice-President Osinbajo, 36 state governors and their
deputies ought to be directed and compelled to make public their asset
declarations as submitted to the CCB.”
“The reliefs sought are constitutionally and statutorily grounded and
based on Nigeria’s international transparency obligations. The reliefs
sought do not clash with the rights to privacy and data protection. Both
rights are not absolute and can be restricted provided there is a basis
in law and a legitimate public interest justifies the restriction.
Prevention of grand corruption and exposing unexplained wealth of
officials are serious and legitimate public interests.”
“SERAP and indeed the general public have a legitimate interest in
ascertaining and scrutinizing the veracity, exactitude and honesty of
information contained in asset declarations submitted by public
officials to the CCB. Without public disclosure of summary of assets,
this would have no practical importance.”
“Public disclosure of summary of assets submitted to the CCB would help
uncover any irregularities and trigger formal verification of
declarations by the CCB and other anti-corruption agencies, be entirely
consistent with government’s expressed commitment to prevent and combat
corruption, provide a safeguard against abuse, and serve as an incentive
to public officials to provide exact information when filing and
submitting their asset declarations.”
“Any perceived claim of interference with the right to privacy are
sufficiently foreseeable for the purposes of the legal requirements for
asset declarations by public officials, given that public-disclosure of
summary of assets would undoubtedly contribute to the legitimate aim of
asset declaration regimes to prevent corruption, as it would ensure
transparency regarding the details of those assets.”
No date has been fixed for the hearing of the suit.