The Bauchi State chapter of the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP), has written to the state’s Accountant General seeking permission to scrutinize the financial activities of the government including its debt profile, financial interventions, statutory allocations and expenditures.
The letter which was signed by the Secretary of the party in the state, Hon. Abdulazeez Haruna, relied on the freedom of information act which requires public institutions to disclose certain information to the public.
According to Haruna, the letter dated September 10th was a follow up to an earlier letter on September 2nd which was not attended to, while noting, that the information was essential for public understanding and scrutiny of the state government’s financial activities.
The letter reads in part:
“We are writing to remind you of our request for information under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) 2011, which was submitted to your office on September 2, 2024. As you are aware, we are seeking certain information regarding the debt profile, statutory allocations, financial interventions, and expenditure of the Bauchi State Government.
“As you may know, our request was made in accordance with the provisions of the FOIA 2011, which requires public institutions to disclose certain information to the public. We believe that this information is essential for public understanding and scrutiny of the state government’s financial activities.
“However, despite our request being over seven days old, we have not received any response or information from your office. As the seven-day deadline has expired, we are writing to remind you of your obligation to provide the requested information within the time frame stipulated by the FOIA.
“We are compelled to remind you that failure to provide the requested information within the specified timeframe may be seen as an attempt to evade transparency and accountability. Therefore, if we do not receive a response within the next 14 days, we will not hesitate to take legal action to enforce our right to access this information under the Freedom of Information Act.
“We believe that it is the duty of the Bauchi State Government to provide transparent and accountable governance to its citizens. Our request is not only legitimate but also essential for public understanding and scrutiny of the state government’s financial activities, and we expect a prompt response”.
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