Insecurity: Disclose Security Votes Spending For 2021, SERAP Tells Buhari, 36 Governors

Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has
sent Freedom of Information requests to President Muhammadu Buhari
and 36 state governors urging them to “disclose details of proposed
‘security votes’ spending in your 2021 appropriation bills to
ensure the security and welfare of Nigerians, and to explain the
measures your governments are putting in place to prevent the
misuse and embezzlement of public funds in the name of security
votes.”

SERAP said: “In the wake of the abduction of over 300 students
from the Government Science Secondary School, Kankara, Katsina
State, and ongoing security challenges in several parts of the
country, the time has come to demonstrate transparency and
accountability in the spending of public funds meant to secure
people’s lives and property.”

In the FoI requests dated 26 December, 2020 and signed by SERAP
deputy director Kolawole Oluwadare, the organization said:
“Disclosing details of spending as security votes for 2021 would
serve to engage the Nigerian people in an honest conversation about
the security challenges confronting the country, and what the
federal and state governments are doing to respond to them. This is
a legitimate public interest matter.”

SERAP also said: “While SERAP understands that authorities may
keep certain matters of operational secrets from the people in the
name of national security, there is no constitutional or legal
basis to hide basic information on public spending from the
people.”

SERAP expressed “concerns that the intense secrecy and lack of
meaningful oversight of the government’s spending of security votes
have for many years contributed to mismanagement and large-scale
corruption in the sector, as well as limited the ability of the
people to hold high-ranking public officials to account for their
constitutional responsibility to ensure the security and welfare of
the people.”

According to SERAP: “Your government’s responsibility to
guarantee and ensure the security and welfare of the Nigerian
people is closely interlinked with your responsibility under
Section 15(5) of the Nigerian Constitution 1999 [as amended] to
abolish all corrupt practices and abuse of office. This imposes a
fundamental obligation to promote transparency and accountability
in security votes spending, and to remove opportunities for
corruption.”

The FoI requests, read in part: “Nigerians have the right to
know what the government is doing in their name. The framers of the
Nigerian Constitution never contemplated opaque spending of public
funds as security votes. Transparency and accountability would
ensure that the policies and action that the government will pursue
to guarantee the security of Nigerians are truly relevant and
effective in keeping them safe.”

“We would be grateful if the requested information is provided
to us within 7 days of the receipt and/or publication of this
letter. If we have not heard from you by then, SERAP shall take all
appropriate legal action under the Nigerian Constitution, the
Freedom of Information Act, the International Covenant on Civil and
Political Rights, and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’
Rights to compel you to comply with our request.”

“Successive governments have failed to effectively discharge
their primary and constitutional responsibility to protect the
lives and property of Nigerians. This is patently contrary to
Section 14(2)(b) of the Nigerian Constitution, which provides that
‘the security and welfare of the people shall be the primary
purpose of government.’”

“Our requests are brought in the public interest, and in keeping
with the requirements of the Nigerian Constitution, the country’s
international human rights obligations including under the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the
African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights. Nigeria has ratified
both human rights treaties.”

“By the combined reading of the provisions of the Nigerian
Constitution, Freedom of Information Act 2011, International
Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and African Charter on
Human and Peoples’ Rights, applicable throughout Nigeria, there are
transparency obligations imposed on your government to disclose
information to the public concerning your proposed security votes
spending for 2021.”

“The Nigerian Constitution, Freedom of Information Act, and the
human rights treaties rest on the principle that citizens should
have access to information regarding their government’s
activities.”

Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has
sent Freedom of Information requests to President Muhammadu Buhari
and 36 state governors urging them to “disclose details of proposed
‘security votes’ spending in your 2021 appropriation bills to
ensure the security and welfare of Nigerians, and to explain the
measures your governments are putting in place to prevent the
misuse and embezzlement of public funds in the name of security
votes.”

SERAP said: “In the wake of the abduction of over 300 students
from the Government Science Secondary School, Kankara, Katsina
State, and ongoing security challenges in several parts of the
country, the time has come to demonstrate transparency and
accountability in the spending of public funds meant to secure
people’s lives and property.”

In the FoI requests dated 26 December, 2020 and signed by SERAP
deputy director Kolawole Oluwadare, the organization said:
“Disclosing details of spending as security votes for 2021 would
serve to engage the Nigerian people in an honest conversation about
the security challenges confronting the country, and what the
federal and state governments are doing to respond to them. This is
a legitimate public interest matter.”

SERAP also said: “While SERAP understands that authorities may
keep certain matters of operational secrets from the people in the
name of national security, there is no constitutional or legal
basis to hide basic information on public spending from the
people.”

SERAP expressed “concerns that the intense secrecy and lack of
meaningful oversight of the government’s spending of security votes
have for many years contributed to mismanagement and large-scale
corruption in the sector, as well as limited the ability of the
people to hold high-ranking public officials to account for their
constitutional responsibility to ensure the security and welfare of
the people.”

According to SERAP: “Your government’s responsibility to
guarantee and ensure the security and welfare of the Nigerian
people is closely interlinked with your responsibility under
Section 15(5) of the Nigerian Constitution 1999 [as amended] to
abolish all corrupt practices and abuse of office. This imposes a
fundamental obligation to promote transparency and accountability
in security votes spending, and to remove opportunities for
corruption.”

The FoI requests, read in part: “Nigerians have the right to
know what the government is doing in their name. The framers of the
Nigerian Constitution never contemplated opaque spending of public
funds as security votes. Transparency and accountability would
ensure that the policies and action that the government will pursue
to guarantee the security of Nigerians are truly relevant and
effective in keeping them safe.”

“We would be grateful if the requested information is provided
to us within 7 days of the receipt and/or publication of this
letter. If we have not heard from you by then, SERAP shall take all
appropriate legal action under the Nigerian Constitution, the
Freedom of Information Act, the International Covenant on Civil and
Political Rights, and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’
Rights to compel you to comply with our request.”

“Successive governments have failed to effectively discharge
their primary and constitutional responsibility to protect the
lives and property of Nigerians. This is patently contrary to
Section 14(2)(b) of the Nigerian Constitution, which provides that
‘the security and welfare of the people shall be the primary
purpose of government.’”

“Our requests are brought in the public interest, and in keeping
with the requirements of the Nigerian Constitution, the country’s
international human rights obligations including under the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the
African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights. Nigeria has ratified
both human rights treaties.”

“By the combined reading of the provisions of the Nigerian
Constitution, Freedom of Information Act 2011, International
Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and African Charter on
Human and Peoples’ Rights, applicable throughout Nigeria, there are
transparency obligations imposed on your government to disclose
information to the public concerning your proposed security votes
spending for 2021.”

“The Nigerian Constitution, Freedom of Information Act, and the
human rights treaties rest on the principle that citizens should
have access to information regarding their government’s
activities.”