$9bn P&ID debt: FG vows to bring persons responsible to book
…To re-jig justice system, restore constitutional democracy
The Federal Government said on Thursday that all those involved in the conception, drafting and signing of agreement between the Ministry of Petroleum Resources and the Process and Industrial Developments Ltd (P&ID) which resulted in the $9 billion judgment debt will be brought to book.
Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), stated this on Thursday in Abuja, while addressing the staff of the Ministry of Justice and its parastatals.
Malami, who returned to his office at the ministry after his inauguration, also outlined what the ministry intends to do in pursuit of the Federal Government’s policy thrust aimed at improving security, fighting corruption and building the economy.
He said that the Federal Government strongly views with serious concerns “the underhand manners by which the negotiations, signing and formation of the contract was carried out by some vested interests in the past administration in connivance with their local and international conspirators.”
He alleged that the agreement was in a bid to inflict grave economic adversity on the Federal Government and her citizens.
The attorney general of federation said that the government will not fold its arms and allow the injustice to go unpunished, adding that all efforts, actions and steps shall be taken “to bring to book all private individuals, corporate entities and government officials – home and abroad, past or present that played direct or indirect roles in the conception, negotiation, signing, formation as well as prosecution of the purported agreement.”
Malami pointed out that the country is being threatened by an emerging class of mutinous elements at a time it needs cohesion.
He said what he saw from his vantage position as attorney general reveals that a critical part of the problem arose from long years of failure of the justice system, lack of compliance with the laws, low capacity by institutions to enforce laws, lack of patriotism and widespread corruption.
He said that he will re-jig the Ministry of Justice and introduce judicial reforms capable of ridding the country of its fundamental vices of economic sabotage, insecurity, separation and systematic corruption.
Malami said that the situation in country demands that “we restore constitutional democracy, rule and law, social justice, economic prosperity as well as political rights of all Nigerians”.
According to him, the Federal Government plans to achieve these by creating a new national order founded on justice and good governance that will engender transparency in the management and allocation of our commonwealth.
“The Federal Ministry of Justice will therefore, rigorously pursue judicial reforms targeted at protection of the sovereignty, integrity, solidarity and well being of Nigerians, contribute its quota to improving the policy thrust of Buhari administration, collaborate with anti-corruption agencies to beam searchlight on the financial institutions to stop from encouraging and deepening corruption in the country.
“The ministry also intends to initiate appropriate executive bills to tackle the systemic and grand corruption that ravaging the country and improve on its asset recovery drive,” Malami added.
