The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has asked Rivers State Governor, Nyesom and other governors to disclose the spending of the oil derivation refunds of N625bn recently paid to them by the Federal Government.
In a statement on Sunday, SERAP’s Deputy Director, Kolawole Oluwadare, wants the governors of the nine oil producing states to “provide and widely publish details of spending of the oil derivation refunds of N625bn recently paid to them by the Federal Government, including details and locations of projects executed with the money.”
Recently, the current administration paid the oil derivation refunds to the governors of Abia, Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Delta, Edo, Rivers, Ondo, Imo and Cross River states. The payments which covered 13 per cent oil derivation, subsidy and SURE-P refunds, date from 1999 to 2021.
In the open letter, the rights group said “It is in the public interest to publish the details of spending of the refunds. Nigerians have the right to know how their states are spending the refunds. It is part of their legally enforceable human rights.”
“Disclosing the information would enable Nigerians to scrutinise the spending of the refunds. Publishing the details of the oil derivation refunds would also promote transparency and accountability in the spending of public funds,” the letter read in part.
