SERAP To Sue Nigerian Politicians Mentioned In Pandora Papers

The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has said it is abuse of public trust and global financial systems for any Nigerian politician to stash illicit wealth abroad.

SERAP was reacting on Wednesday to a global investigative story tagged the ‘Pandora Papers’, which disclosed how about 330 politicians in 91 countries including Nigeria, in a bid to bypass tax rules, allegedly secretly acquired properties overseas.

The report was carried out by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists in collaboration with 600 journalists across the world.

But the ICIJ had noted that, “it’s not possible to know how much of that wealth is tied to tax evasion and other crimes and how much of it involves funds that come from legitimate sources and have been reported to proper authorities.”

Among Nigerians mentioned in the investigation include Peter Obi, former governor of Anambra, Abubakar Bagudu, Governor of Kebbi, Senator Stella Oduah, and Mohammed Bello Koko (Finance director of Nigerian Ports Authority) among others.

SERAP said it may take legal actions against the Nigerian politicians after studying the report to ascertain whether those mentioned committed alleged crime.

“We’re taking legal action to hold to account Nigerian politicians implicated in the #PandoraPapers and ensure the confiscation of any proceeds of corruption.

“We’re concerned that much of the money revealed in PandoraPapers may be corrupt: diverted from public funds or the relentless accumulation of bribes.

“We’re carefully studying the #PandoraPapers allegations. We’ll fight to ensure that these allegations don’t end up the way the Panama Papers did,” SERAP tweeted on Wednesday.