Edo State rights activists have secured a major victory against the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) tbrough a judgment by the Federal High Court in Port Harcourt, Rivers State on Wednesday.
The activists through their counsel, President Aigbokhan had written a letter to the commission requesting for detailed breakdown of the expenditure and the receipts of disbursement of the sum of N308bn appropriated to the commission in 2014.
This, the Commission failed to comply with which necessitated the applicants’ move.
In his judgment, the trial Judge, Justice A. M. Liman held that the action of the Commission denying the applicants Certified True Copies (CTC) of 70 documents relating to the spending, newspapers publications, procurement journals, tender bills, receipt of payment or other documents of the projects awarded by the Commission between 2012-2014 amounts to breach of their fundamental right of information, guaranteed under section 39 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999.
The Court also ordered the Commission to disclose the amount of money transferred to the Commission from Ecological fund, Oil Producing and Extractive Industries and the International Oil Companies in Nigeria to the Commission between the year 2013-2014 and the breakdown and receipts of expenditure.
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