The Federal High Court sitting in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, has ordered the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) to publish its forensic audit report within 90 days, alongside a comprehensive account of funds received and expended by the commission.
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Court documents show that the judgment was delivered on October 24, 2025, while the Certified True Copy dated December 9, 2025, was made available to The PUNCH on Monday in Yenagoa.
The court ruled that the publication of the forensic audit report should cover the period of the interim management under Prof. Nelson Brambaifa to date.
The ruling was delivered in a suit marked FHC/YNG/CS/135/2021, filed by 11 indigenes from the nine Niger Delta states against the Attorney General of the Federation.
The applicants are Odighon Adienbo (for herself and on behalf of the Wailing Women of the Niger Delta), Integrity Friends for Truth and Peace Initiative, Peace Ossy, Utibe Benedict, Mrs. Beatrice Iyoung, Juliana Alagoa, Loveth Timothy, Loveth Kekghe, Osaruchi Idemesaro, Modimu Beauty, and Nkechi Umeozor.
In the judgment, Justice Isa Dashen issued a perpetual injunction restraining the Federal Government or its agents from appointing a Sole Administrator or Interim Management to run the affairs of the NDDC, holding that such arrangements contravene the provisions of the NDDC Act.
The applicants instituted the suit on April 14, 2022, pursuant to the Federal High Court Act, the Federal High Court (Civil Procedure) Rules, and the Freedom of Information Act.
It will be recalled that former President Muhammadu Buhari, in 2019, ordered a forensic audit of the NDDC to probe allegations of mismanagement and diversion of over N6tn between 2001 and 2019.
The audit report was submitted to the Federal Government in 2021 but has yet to be made public.
Delivering the judgment, Justice Dashen held that the applicants had sufficiently established their entitlement to the reliefs sought.
“Having carefully considered the affidavit evidence placed before this court, the submissions of learned counsel on both sides, and the issues distilled and resolved in this ruling, it is manifest that the applicants have substantially established their entitlement to the reliefs sought,” the judge ruled.
“The respondent is hereby directed to publish forthwith the forensic audit report of the NDDC for public access in the interest of transparency and accountability.
“It is hereby ordered that the respondent shall, within 90 days, cause the NDDC to render and publish a comprehensive account of funds received and expended by the commission from the period of Prof. Nelson Brambaifa’s interim management to date.”
Justice Dashen further granted a perpetual injunction restraining the respondent, his agents, or privies from constituting a Sole Administrator or Interim Management to oversee the affairs of the commission.
The court also ordered that the NDDC must remain an independent statutory body as established by its enabling Act and must not be merged with or subsumed under any ministry except through an express amendment of the Act by the National Assembly.
The respondents were ordered to comply with the judgment within 90 days, while costs of N200,000 were awarded jointly and severally against them in favour of the applicants.
The forensic audit reportedly uncovered about 13,000 abandoned projects executed by the NDDC across the nine Niger Delta states.
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