Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP)
has sent an urgent appeal to three United Nations special rapporteurs, Koumbou
Boly Barry, Dainius Puras and Olivier De Schutter, urging them to use their
mandates to urgently request the Nigerian Government and the leadership of the
National Assembly to immediately reverse budget cuts to education and
healthcare, and to stop the authorities from spending N27billion to renovate
the National Assembly complex.
In the revised 2020 budget approved last Tuesday,
the federal government gave the National Assembly N27 billion for the
renovation of its complex, and cut health and Universal Basic Education budgets
by over 50 percent. While the health budget is reduced from N44.4billion to
N25.5billion, the UBE budget is reduced from N111.7billion to N51.1billion.
In the appeal dated June 3 which was signed by
SERAP Deputy Director, Kolawole Oluwadare, the organisation noted that the
budget deficits are caused by excessive expenditures on politicians, and yet
Nigerian authorities are putting politicians’ allowances and comfort before citizens’
human rights.
SERAP said the budget cuts showed failure to
address the growing economic and social inequality in the country, and to
genuinely address the consequences of COVID-19 on the poor and marginalised
groups.
It further said the budget cuts are also
inconsistent with Nigeria’s commitments to implement Sustainable Development
Goals (SDGs).
The appeal read in part: ''Nigerian authorities
also ought to show that the budget cuts to healthcare and education are
necessary and proportionate, in that they must be justifiable. One of the
pillars of the protection of the rights to healthcare and education is the obligation
to progressively realise the rights set out in the International Covenant on
Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, making use of Nigeria’s maximum of available
resources.
''The budget cuts by Nigerian authorities are
therefore of special concern as they directly affect the minimum core content
of these rights, and impact directly or indirectly and disproportionally on
those individuals already discriminated against or living in most vulnerable
situations.
“The number of Nigerians living in extreme poverty
has increased since May 2015. The reduction in healthcare and education budgets
would exacerbate the prevailing inequalities and poverty, and create a vicious
circle of reduction in spending, and increments in socio-economic
inequalities.''
It added: ''Without your urgent intervention, the
Nigerian Government and National Assembly would continue to spend the country’s
maximum available resources to satisfy the opulent lifestyles of politicians
rather than complying with Nigeria’s international human rights obligations to
respect, protect, promote and fulfill the rights to healthcare and education
for the poor and marginalised groups.
“SERAP, therefore, urged the special rapporteurs to
put pressure on the Nigerian Government and the National Assembly to take
immediate action to reverse the budget cuts to healthcare and education and to
redirect the N27billion for the renovation of the National Assembly complex to
increase healthcare and education budgets.''
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