By Kazeem Ugbodaga
The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has called on President Bola Tinubu to urgently order the publication of the long-delayed forensic audit report on the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).
It warned that justice is being obstructed by those allegedly implicated in the report.
In a letter dated 5 July, 2025 and signed by SERAP Deputy Director, Kolawole Oluwadare, the organisation urged the President to direct the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), to investigate allegations that some high-ranking officials and politicians indicted in the audit deliberately blocked the release of the report submitted in 2021.
SERAP is also demanding that the government identify and prosecute those behind the alleged obstruction, publish the full findings of the audit, and recover public funds misappropriated by those named in the report, believed to involve over N6 trillion in missing funds and 13,000 abandoned projects in the Niger Delta.
“The forensic audit report of the NDDC can no longer be left to gather dust,” SERAP stated.
“The continued failure to publish the report undermines public trust and confidence, especially among victims of corruption in the Niger Delta who have waited too long for justice and accountability.”
The organisation noted that despite being commissioned with public funds, reportedly N1.4 billion, the report remains unpublished nearly four years after being submitted to former President Muhammadu Buhari in September 2021.
SERAP alleged that Buhari’s administration failed to act on the report to shield politically exposed individuals, with claims that a former minister’s wife received N48 billion in one year to “train Niger Delta women.”
It also alleged that many NDDC contracts were awarded to members of the National Assembly, further fuelling impunity and mismanagement in the commission.
SERAP warned that if the Tinubu administration fails to act within seven days of receiving the letter, it would institute legal proceedings before the ECOWAS Court of Justice to compel the government to release the report and prosecute those implicated.
“There is a legitimate public interest in publishing the full forensic audit report and naming and shaming those responsible for leaving it to gather dust,” the letter reads. “Obstructing its release is a wilful attempt to pervert the course of justice.”
The group argued that failure to act on the audit would suggest the exercise was never intended to ensure transparency, but rather to delay accountability.
It also said the delay violates both the Nigerian Constitution and international anti-corruption obligations, particularly under the UN Convention against Corruption (UNCAC).
SERAP stressed that victims of corruption in the oil-rich Niger Delta have continued to suffer from poor access to basic services such as healthcare, education, and electricity, due to massive financial mismanagement.
“The missing N6 trillion and over 13,000 abandoned projects have had a devastating impact on the lives and rights of ordinary Nigerians,” the organisation said.
“Publishing the report and acting on its findings would be a critical step in addressing poverty and rebuilding public confidence in the fight against corruption,” it added.
