The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has called on the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), to immediately enforce a court judgment directing him and President Bola Tinubu to publish the names of individuals indicted in the alleged misappropriation of N6 trillion linked to abandoned projects of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).
The funds were reportedly meant for the execution of 13,777 projects undertaken by the NDDC between 2000 and 2019.
The judgment, delivered on November 10, 2025, by Justice Gladys Olotu of the Federal High Court, Abuja, followed a Freedom of Information suit (FHC/ABJ/CS/1360/2021) filed by SERAP. Justice Olotu also ordered the Attorney General and the President to publish and make publicly available the NDDC forensic audit report submitted to the Federal Government on September 2, 2021.
In a letter dated December 13, 2025, signed by SERAP’s Deputy Director Kolawole Oluwadare, the organisation said the continued failure to enforce the judgment undermines the rule of law in Nigeria.
“Justice Olotu’s judgment is final, binding, and immediately enforceable. Continued refusal to comply makes a mockery of Nigeria’s legal and judicial processes,” SERAP stated, citing Section 287(1) of the 1999 Constitution, which mandates enforcement of court decisions across the federation.
SERAP warned that failure to comply exposes responsible officials to contempt proceedings and personal liability, emphasizing that immediate enforcement would help restore public confidence in the Tinubu administration’s commitment to transparency and accountability in the Niger Delta.
Justice Olotu had ruled that the NDDC forensic audit report and the names of indicted persons qualify as public records under Section 31 of the Freedom of Information Act and are not exempt from disclosure. She held that the refusal to publish the report or act on its findings constituted a breach of statutory duties under the FOI Act, Section 15(5) of the Constitution, and Nigeria’s international obligations.
SERAP gave the Attorney General seven days to comply with the judgment or face contempt proceedings.
