BY VICTOR BUORO – The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has directed the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction (FMHAPR) to make public the names of beneficiaries and amount disbursed to them under the Conditional Cash Transfer programme between November 2024 and May 2025.
According to the court ruling, there should be transparency rather than opaqueness in the management of public funds by Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) of government.
Justice Binta Nyako delivered the ruling in suit number FHC/ABJ/CS/1222/2025, brought before her by a lawyer and former governorship candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in the 2024 Ondo State election, Myson Nejo
Nejo had dragged the Ministry and Federal Government before the Court, demanding disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act 2011 of (i) the names of beneficiaries in all 18 local government areas of Ondo State and (ii) the amounts disbursed to each council for the programme.
Initially, the Ministry had responded through the National Social Investment Programme Agency (NSIPA) which acknowledged the request and said it was retrieving records for compliance.
However, the Ministry unfortunately reneged on its promise and failed to provide the information as earlier agreed.
Defending its position in Court, the Ministry’s legal team, led by counsel Ibrahim Moddibo, opposed the application on grounds that public disclosure would invade and violate the beneficiaries’ privacy.
However, in his submission, Nejo’s lawyer, Vincent Adodo, countered that the public interest in transparency and accountability over taxpayer-funded social programmes outweighed the privacy concerns raised by the Ministry.
Ruling on the case, Justice Nyako agreed with the applicant’s submission, noting that the information was properly subject to the FOI Act and must be made public within seven days after the judgment.
Furthermore, the court awarded damages of two million Naira (₦2m) in favour of Nejo for the Ministry’s previous refusal to comply with the provisions of the FOI law
Meanwhile, there are records of earlier court rulings affirming claims that privacy or inconvenience cannot automatically override public access to information on how tax payers money are utilised by officials and agencies of government.
Among typical examples of such cases cited by legal experts are the Supreme Court judgment of April 2025 that directed the Edo State Agency for the Control of AIDS (EDOSACA) to release its financial records as well as the September 2025 judgment delivered by the Court of Appeal which upheld a ruling ordering the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to disclose details of subsidised exchange-rates provided to pilgrims.
