Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project has filed a lawsuit against

the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio and the Speaker of the House of

Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, over their failure to end the fixing the

National Assembly’s allowances as well as the failure to account for the

monthly running costs paid to members.

In the suit at the Federal High Court, Abuja, Akpabio and Abbas were sued

separately and on behalf of all members of the National Assembly.

SERAP, in the suit filed on behalf of its lawyers, is seeking an order of

mandamus to direct and compel Akpabio and Abbas to end the apparently

unlawful practice of the National Assembly fixing its remuneration and

allowances termed as ‘running cost’ and called for the disclosure of the exact

amount of the monthly running costs being paid to and received by the

lawmakers and the spending details of any such running costs.”

SERAP argued that the provisions of paragraph N, section 32(d) of the Third

Schedule to the Nigerian Constitution 1999 [as amended] clearly make it

unlawful for the National Assembly to fix its salaries, allowances and running

costs, and argued that, the alleged practice of paying running costs into the

personal accounts of lawmakers is a fundamental breach of Rule 713 of the

Federal Government Financial Regulations.

SERAP also said, Section 15(5) of the Nigerian Constitution requires public

institutions to abolish all corrupt practices and abuse of power, while,

Section 16(2) of the Constitution further provides that, ‘the material

resources of the nation are harnessed and distributed as best as possible to

serve the common good, and no date has been fixed for the hearing of the

suit.