Group sues Buhari, FG over huge foreign loans, chronic indebtedness
A civil society organization, the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has filed a suit against the federal government and President Muhammadu Buhari, over the secrecy surrounding Nigeria’s recurrent loans,her huge debt profile and attendant economic woes.
The suit which is marked: ECW/CCJ/APP/05/22 has been filed before the ECOWAS Court of Justice in Abuja, according to a statement issued on Sunday by SERAP’s Deputy Director, Kolawole Oluwadare.
SERAP explained the reason for the lawsuit as “the secrecy in the spending of loans so far obtained, the unsustainable level of borrowing by the government and the 36 States, debt crisis, and the disproportionately negative impact of these retrogressive measures on poor Nigerians.
“The persistent and unsustainable borrowing by the federal government and the crippling debt burden undermines the rights of Nigerians to economic and social development, which are antithetical to the public interest.”
The organization therefore sought an order to ensure the public disclosure of all loans obtained by governments since 1999, as well as the list of projects and locations of any such projects on which these loans have been spent.
It is also seeking an order to compel the FG regarding a moratorium against the incessant borrowing.
No date has yet been fixed by the court to entertain the suit.
