The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has instituted legal action against the Federal Government of Nigeria before the ECOWAS Community Court of Justice in Abuja over the alleged diversion and unaccounted spending of over N78.8 billion earmarked for vulnerable social safety net beneficiaries.
The suit, registered under reference number ECW/CCJ/APP/42/26 and filed by legal counsels Kolawole Oluwadare and Kehinde Oyewumi, stems from findings highlighted in the 2024 Auditor-General of the Federation’s report covering disbursement records between January 2023 and December 2024.
The watchdog organization is seeking judicial orders to compel the federal executive administration to launch an independent probe, retrieve mismanaged allocations, and establish rigorous oversight frameworks across the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, the National Cash Transfer Office, and the National Social Safety Nets Coordinating Office.
According to court filings from the applicant, the questioned financial disbursements directly compromised support packages designated for more than 3.2 million vulnerable households across 35 states.
In the application, SERAP declared: “The failure to investigate the N78.8 billion cash-transfer scandal, account for the questioned funds and recover any unlawfully spent amounts violates Nigeria’s obligations to protect the human rights of vulnerable households.”
The advocacy group further noted in its submission: “SERAP brings this public-interest case to protect the interests of affected households and ensure accountability for public funds allocated for their benefit. Cash-transfer programmes help address extreme poverty and enable vulnerable people to meet their basic needs.”
No official date has been assigned by the regional tribunal for the preliminary hearing of the suit.
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