HURIWA calls for accountability over alleged ₦8.8trn off-budget expenditure

The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has called for an independent judicial investigation into allegations that about ₦8.8 trillion in public expenditure was spent outside Nigeria’s approved budget framework.

The National Coordinator of HURIWA, Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko, in a statement issued on Abuja, described the development as a major threat to constitutional governance and fiscal accountability.

Onwubiko, said the allegations, reportedly contained in the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) recent Article IV Consultation, suggest that public expenditures equivalent to about two per cent of Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) were not captured in the country’s official budget documents.

He warned that if the claims are confirmed, they would represent one of the most serious cases of fiscal opacity in Nigeria’s democratic history.

According to him, a constitutional democracy cannot permit trillions of naira in public expenditure to exist outside the statutory budgetary framework without legislative oversight, public accountability and constitutional scrutiny.

He noted that the allegations, which have also been raised by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, require more than political exchanges or official denials.

Onwubiko insisted that a transparent, independent and forensic investigation should be conducted to determine whether public funds were expended in violation of the Constitution, the Fiscal Responsibility Act, the Public Procurement Act and other financial regulations.

He also criticised the reported response of the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, describing it as inadequate considering the seriousness of the allegations.

He urged President Bola Tinubu to immediately establish an independent Judicial Commission of Inquiry comprising respected jurists, forensic auditors, chartered accountants, civil society representatives and financial crime experts to investigate the allegations.

He also called on the National Assembly to exercise its constitutional oversight powers by conducting a comprehensive public hearing into the alleged off-budget expenditures.

According to him, Nigerians deserve a full explanation of how such enormous sums were allegedly spent outside the legislative appropriation process.