SERAP Sues Akpabio, Abbas Over Alleged ₦18.6bn National Assembly Fund Diversion

The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has filed a lawsuit against Senate President Godswill Akpabio and House Speaker Tajudeen Abbas over the alleged misappropriation of ₦18.6 billion earmarked for the National Assembly Service Commission (NASC) office complex in Abuja.

The civil society organization is also suing the National Assembly Service Commission and all National Assembly members in the suit filed at the Federal High Court in Abuja (case number FHC/ABJ/CS/2457/2025).

The lawsuit stems from findings in the Auditor-General’s 2022 Annual Report, released on September 9, 2025, which flagged the entire ₦18.6 billion expenditure as suspicious, unsupported, and unaccounted for.

SERAP is asking the court to compel the National Assembly leadership and NASC to:

• Provide a full account of how the money was spent

• Reveal the identity of the alleged “fictitious construction company” that received payment

• Release all documents related to the contract, including bid advertisements, agreements, quotations, needs assessments, Tender Board minutes, and approvals from the Federal Executive Council and Bureau of Public Procurement

The audit report revealed that over ₦11.6 billion was paid in 2020 to an “unknown company” with no evidence of work done.

An additional ₦6.9 billion was reportedly added in 2023, raising suspicions of contract inflation.

The report also exposed glaring procedural violations:

• No Bill of Quantity

• No needs assessment conducted

• No public advertisement or competitive bidding

• No Federal Executive Council approval

• No Bureau of Public Procurement Certificate of No Objection

The Auditor-General warned that the entire project fund may have been diverted.

In the suit filed by its legal team led by Kolawole Oluwadare, SERAP argues that the alleged mismanagement violates Nigeria’s Constitution and the country’s commitments under the UN Convention Against Corruption.

The organization insists Nigerians have a right to know what happened to the billions, especially as corruption continues to deepen poverty and deny citizens access to essential services.

“The National Assembly must lead by example in protecting public resources—not be at the center of scandals involving them,” SERAP stated.