Court Orders Buhari Ministers, Others To Refund Pensions Collected As Ex-Govs

The federal government has been directed by a federal high court in Ikoyi, Lagos state to recover all pension and allowances received by former governors serving as ministers and members of the National Assembly.

This was disclosed in a tweet by the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) on Wednesday.

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The judgment by Justice Oluremi Oguntoyinbo followed lawsuit in a number of FHC/L/CS/1497/2017 brought by SERAP against the Nigerian government.

In 2017 the organisation sued the federal government over its failure to stop former governors and now serving senators and ministers from receiving double pay and life pensions, and failure to seek recovery of over N40bn of public funds unduly received by these public officers.

According to SERAP, those who reportedly receive double emoluments and large severance benefits from their states include: Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso (Kano); Kabiru Gaya (Kano); Godswill Akpabio (Akwa Ibom); Theodore Orji (Abia); Abdullahi Adamu (Nasarawa); Sam Egwu (Ebonyi); Shaaba Lafiagi (Kwara); Joshua Dariye (Plateau), and Jonah Jang (Plateau).

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Others include: Ahmed Sani Yarima (Zamfara); Danjuma Goje (Gombe); Bukar Abba Ibrahim (Yobe); Adamu Aliero (Kebbi); George Akume (Benue); and Rotimi Amaechi (Rivers).”

The high court also directed the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice Abubakar Malami, to challenge the legality of states’ pension laws permitting former governors and other ex-public officials to collect such pensions.

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