Court Orders FG to Publish Names of Suspects in Alleged N6tn NDDC Fraud
The Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered President Bola Tinubu to direct the Attorney-General of the Federation to publish the names of all individuals indicted in the alleged mismanagement of over N6 trillion allocated to the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) between 2000 and 2019.
The ruling, delivered by Justice Gladys Olotu on Monday, November 10, also mandates the Federal Government to make public the long-awaited NDDC forensic audit report submitted on September 2, 2021.
The judgment—issued in response to a Freedom of Information suit filed by the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP)—was obtained in certified form last Friday.
Justice Olotu declared that both the forensic audit report and the list of indicted persons are “public records” under Section 31 of the Freedom of Information Act, and therefore must be disclosed.
She further ruled that the information does not fall under any exemptions listed in Sections 11–19 of the Act, as it concerns public funds and governance.
According to the court, the refusal of the President and the Attorney-General to release the documents, despite SERAP’s formal requests, amounts to a breach of their statutory obligations under the FOI Act, Section 15(5) of the 1999 Constitution, and Nigeria’s international commitments to transparency.
Justice Olotu noted that citizens have a legal right to access public information and stressed that the FOI Act imposes a mandatory duty on public institutions to disclose such records.
Reacting to the judgment, SERAP’s Deputy Director, Kolawole Oluwadare, hailed the ruling as a “groundbreaking victory for transparency and accountability in Nigeria’s public finance.”
Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, SAN, also applauded the decision, describing it as “one of the most patriotic public interest cases ever pursued in Nigeria.” He warned that any delay in enforcement would weaken the country’s anti-corruption efforts and erode confidence in the rule of law.
SERAP, in a letter dated November 22, 2025, urged President Tinubu to comply immediately with the court’s directives, stating that doing so would reaffirm the administration’s commitment to transparency, accountability, and good governance.
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