The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has announced that it will file a lawsuit against the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, over the alleged disbursement of ‘holiday allowances’ to senators, who are currently on recess, by the Clerk of the National Assembly.
This is coming barely 4 weeks after the advocacy group threatened to sue Akpabio and the Speaker House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, over the scandalous plan to spend N40 billion on 465 exotic and bulletproof cars for members and principal officers as well as N70 billion as palliatives to new members.
This disclosure is contained in a tweet posted by SERAP on its official Twitter account on Thursday, August 10, 2023, in what appears to be the consistency of the advocacy group’s fight against misuse of public funds and breach of fundamental human rights.
What SERAP is saying
- SERAP in its tweet post said, ‘’BREAKING: We’re suing the Senate President Godswill Akpabio over the alleged payments of “holiday allowances” by the Clerk of the National Assembly into the “various accounts” of senators while some 137 million poor Nigerians face severe economic hardship.’’
Although the details of the proposed lawsuit and the specific charges still appear largely unclear, the move once again puts more pressure on the federal lawmakers over the humongous salary and allowances they are alleged to be collecting even in the face of severe hardship and harsh economic challenges that Nigerians are facing.
In case you missed
The Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, has come under heavy criticism after mistakenly revealing that holiday allowance had been sent to the bank accounts of senators who are billed to go on their annual recess.
Akpabio had, on Monday before the Senate adjourned for annual recess, told his colleagues that money had been sent to them to “enjoy” their holiday, apparently not aware that the proceeding was being captured on live camera.
- The Senate President said: “In order to enable all of us to enjoy our holidays, a token has been sent to our various accounts by the Clerk of the National Assembly.”
- Upon realising that he was speaking on live television, he quickly retracted, and said, “I withdraw that statement. In order to allow you to enjoy your holiday, the senate president has sent prayers to your mailboxes to assist you to go on a safe journey and return.”
Akpabio’s gaffe stirred controversy across the nation, raising questions about the legitimacy and timing of such money transfers. Critics argue that when a significant portion of the nation’s population is facing economic hardship, such allowances seem both unjust and inconsiderate.
