By Onyewuchi Ojinnaka
Justice Chuka Obiozor of Federal High Court sitting in Lagos Nigeria has ordered the Federal Government/Ministry of Power to immediately release details of payments made to all defaulting and alleged corrupt electricity contractors, and companies awarded contract by the governments of former Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo, the late Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, Goodluck Ebele Jonathan and incumbent government of President Muhammadu Buhari.
The judge gave the order in a judgement he delivered on a Freedom of Information suit number FHC/L/CS/105/19 filed by the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), a human rights and advocacy organisation.
In the judgement, Justice Obiozor also ordered for the full disclosure and publication of the names of companies, and the whereabouts of the contractors who were paid by successive governments since the return of democracy in 1999 to carry out electricity projects across the country but disappeared with the money without executing any projects.
The details ordered by the court to be disclosed and published on a dedicated and wildly read website include information on specific names and details about contractors and companies paid by each government; the total amounts paid by each government and the objects for the payments; the level of implementation of electricity projects, as well as details and specific locations of projects executed across the country by each government since 1999.
The court also held in the suit brought against the Federal Government and the Ministry of Power, that failure by the government of President Muhammadu to provide SERAP with the details of payments made to contractors by each government since 1999, is a breach of the Freedom of Information Act, 2011.
The court further ordered the government of President Muhammadu Buhari to without further delay, disclose if there is an ongoing investigation or prosecution of contractors and companies paid by successive governments since 1999 to carry out electricity projects but failed to execute the projects for which public funds were collected.
Justice Obiozor in his judgment granted the following reliefs:
A DECLARATION is hereby made that the failure and/or refusal of the Respondent (Federal Government/Ministry of Power) to provide SERAP with documents and information containing the specific names and details of contractors and companies that have been engaged in the power sector by successive governments since 1999, details, of specific projects and the amounts that have been paid to the contractors and companies, details on the level of implementation of electricity projects and their specific locations across the country, and failure to widely publish it on a dedicated website, any of such information, amounts to a breach of the obligations under the Freedom of Information Act 2011
A DECLARATION is hereby made that the failure and/or refusal of the Respondent (Federal Government/Ministry of Power) to provide SERAP with specific documents and information containing the specific names and details of contractors and companies that allegedly collected money for electricity projects from successive governments since 1999 but failed to execute any of such projects, and failure to widely publish it on a dedicated website, any of such information, amounts to a breach of the Respondent’s responsibility/obligation under the Freedom of Information Act 2011
AN ORDER OF MANDAMUS is made directing and compelling the Respondent (Federal Government/Ministry of Power) to urgently compile and make available to SERAP documents and information containing the specific names and details of contactors and companies that have been engaged in the power sector by successive governments since the return of democracy in 1999 to date; details of specific projects and the amounts that have been paid to the contracts and companies, details on the level of implementation of electricity projects and their specific locations across the country and to publish widely including on a dedicated website, any of such information
AN ORDER OF MANDAMUS is made directing and compelling the Respondent (Federal Government/Ministry of Power) to urgently compile and make available to SERAP documents and information containing the specific names and details of contactors and companies that allegedly collected money for electricity projects from successive governments since 1999 but failed to execute any projects
A DECLARATION is hereby made that the failure and/or refusal of the Respondent (Federal Government/Ministry of Power) to urgently disclose if there is an ongoing investigation or prosecution of allegedly corrupt contractors and companies in the electricity sector, amounts to a breach of the Respondent’s responsibility/obligation under the Freedom of Information Act 2011
AN ORDER OF MANDAMUS is made directing and compelling the Respondent [Federal Government/Ministry of Power] to urgently disclose if there is an ongoing investigation or prosecution of allegedly corrupt contractors and companies in the electricity sector.
SERAP deputy director Kolawole Oluwadare said: “We welcome the ground-breaking judgment by Justice Obiozor as a victory for transparency and accountability of public officials, electricity contractors and companies and their shareholders. It is an extremely important step toward tackling the impunity in electricity sector, which has for many years forced ordinary Nigerians to stay in darkness, but still made to pay crazy electricity bills.”
“SERAP commends the Court, and Justice Obiozor for this brilliant judgment, which will surely command respect and adulation from far beyond the legal profession.”
“During the 20 years of Nigeria’s democracy successive governments have failed to increase power generation and provide Nigerians with regular and uninterrupted electricity supply, with many electricity contracts shrouded in secrecy, and trillions of Naira going down the drain.”
“This judgment is good news for ordinary Nigerians who have continued to pay the price for corruption in the electricity sector, as they would finally get an explanation on why the country has remained in darkness despite huge investment in the power sector by the governments of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, former President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, former President Goodluck Jonathan, and the government of Muhammadu Buhari.”
“The enforcement of the judgment could potentially reveal individuals, contractors, and companies allegedly responsible for squandering over N11 trillion meant to provide regular electricity supply under successive governments, lead to the prosecution of suspected perpetrators, and recovery of stolen public funds.”
“SERAP calls upon the government of President Muhammadu Buhari to demonstrate his oft-repeated commitment to the rule of law by immediately obeying and respecting the judgment of the Court.”
“SERAP has applied for the certified true copy of the judgment, which we will share widely once it’s obtained,” Oluwadare stated.
It would be called that SERAP had in February filed the FOI suit against the Federal Government and former Minister of Power Mr Babatunde Fashola. The former minister then responded, saying that: “the Ministry has searched for the requested information on details of alleged contractors and companies but we could not find it from our records.”
Mr Fashola subsequently sent SERAP the name of just one contractor–Pow Technologies Limited, an Abuja based company–through the Ministry’s letter with reference number FMP/LU/R2K/2016/T/40. The company was said to have been awarded a contract in 2014 but only supplied 13 of the 19 electricity maintenance equipment relays agreed. The government paid N79,404,892.66 to Pow Technologies Limited.