FG signs tripartite agreement to recover $318m Abacha loot
The federal government has signed an agreement with the United States of America and the Island of Jersey to repatriate the sum of $318,460,329 looted and stashed away by former Head of State, Gen. Sani Abacha.
Spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ferdinand Nwonye, said in a statement that the agreement was sealed on Monday at the US Department of States in Washington DC.
Nwonye said that as part of the rules of engagement, the recovered funds would be used to fund three major projects, the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Abuja-Kano Expressway and the Second Niger Bridge, adding that the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority will supervise the projects.
The agreement was signed by the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation Abubakar Malami (SAN) on behalf of the federal government, the Assistant Solicitor General of the Island of Jersey, Mark Temple and Deputy Assistant Attorney General in the US Department of Justice, Kevin Drisioil, on behalf of the United States government.
Also, Nwonye revealed that the agreement was witnessed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama and his counterparts from the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, that on Humanitarian Affairs, Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, the National Security Adviser, permanent secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, group managing director of the NNPC and the Nigerian ambassador to the United States among others.
The delegates had travelled on Sunday for the annual three-day meeting of the United States-Nigeria Bi-national Commission in Washington DC.
The meeting is aimed at reviewing bilateral relationship and taking the necessary steps to advance mutual interest in all diplomatic areas among the two countries.
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The statement reads in part: “This agreement represents the culmination of two decades of intensive work by law officers in Jersey, the United States and Nigeria.
The return of the assets to Nigeria had been delayed by a number of hard-fought challenges by third parties, which were defeated in the courts in Jersey and the United States.
“The agreement establishes a framework based on fruitful co-operation, trust and respect so that the forfeited funds can be repatriated to benefit the people of Nigeria, from whom they had been taken. The use of the funds will be subject to monitoring and reporting obligations.
“This is a very significant achievement, and, once again, demonstrates Jersey’s commitment to tackling international financial crime and money laundering.”
“Since becoming aware that the alleged proceeds of Abacha corruption and money laundering had passed through Jersey financial institutions, the Jersey authorities have done everything within their power to investigate what happened and to return the money to its rightful owners, the people of Nigeria.
“I would like to offer my sincere thanks and appreciation to the dedicated team within the law officers’ department, and their colleagues in United States and Nigeria.”
Malami urged for greater cooperation and mutual respect amongst countries in the implementation of expeditious cooperation measures already set out in the United Nations convention against corruption and in the implementation of principles on the repatriation of stolen assets.
He called for civil society organizations and the Nigerian public to be involved in the monitoring of the implementation of the key infrastructure projects that will greatly enhance road transportation in Nigeria.
