Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability
Project, (SERAP) has sent an appeal to Access to Information (AI) Appeals Board
against the World Bank’s decision dated 25 November 2015 “to provide patently insufficient
information on the spending of recovered stolen funds by the late General Sani
Abacha.”
The organisation said it considered the
decision “a serious violation of the AI Policy, as it amounts to improper or
unreasonable restriction of access to information.”
In the appeal dated 5 February
2016 and signed by SERAP deputy executive director Olukayode Majekodunmi the
organisation said, “Following receipt of several documents from the World Bank
totalling over 700 pages on the Abacha loot, SERAP commenced independent
investigations and verification of some of the information supplied with
appropriate agencies and institutions of government.”
The appeal reads in part: “SERAP is concerned that the World Bank failed
and/or neglected to provide several portions of the information requested on
the spending of recovered Abacha loot managed by the Bank.”
“SERAP notes that one of the guiding principles of the Policy on Access
to Information (AI Policy) is recognizing the right to an appeals process when
a request for information in the World Bank's possession is improperly or
unreasonably denied.”
“SERAP argues that there is a strong public interest case here to override
the corporate administrative matters, deliberative information or financial
information exceptions of the AI Policy if the information being requested
falls under one of these exceptions.”
“SERAP believes that it is not harmful for the Bank to disclose specific
details of the information requested. SERAP also notes that the sole remedy
available to those who prevail in the appeals process is to receive the
information requested.”
SERAP therefore
requested the Access to
Information (AI) Appeals Board to exercise its prerogative and allow disclosure
of the following specific information and any feedback from the World Bank
Evaluation Team on the issues below:
1.
Evidence and list of the 23 projects
allegedly completed with recovered Abacha loot, and whether the 26 projects
where actually completed; and what became of the 2 abandoned projects.
2.
Evidence and location of the 8 health centers
built with recovered Abacha loot reviewed by the World Bank
3.
Evidence and location of the 18 power
projects confirmed by the World Bank
4.
How the $50mn Abacha loot received before
2005 kept in the special account was spent
5.
Evidence and location of schools which
benefited from the Universal Basic Education (UBE) program in the amount of
NGN24.25bn
6.
Evidence and location of the 13 road projects
completed with the recovered Abacha loot, including the names of the 3 of the
largest road and bridge projects in each geo-political zone
Written by NEWSTRAWL ONLINE UPDATE
Sodiq Oyeleke is a Media, Human Resources, Project Management and Public Relations Practitioner
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