The Federal Government on Saturday said the Bagudu family assets in contention which constitutes a distinct and separate cause of action, is not connected with the assets already recovered and being recovered under the Abacha 2014 non-prosecution agreement.
This followed an earlier report of alleged attempts by the federal government to hand over $100 million recovered from a former Head of State, Gen. Sani Abacha, to Kebbi State Governor Abubakar Bagudu.
A statement from the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice signed by Dr Umar Jibrilu Gwandu, the Special Assistant on Media and Public Relations, said it was well known that the USA and the Bagudu family had been in court since 2014 over assets already rescinded under the 2003 agreement.
The matters, he said, are to be determined in the United Kingdom and the United States Courts and it is therefore mischievous and pedestrian for anyone to seek to turn the law and the facts on its head on the matter of repatriation whose terms are clearly spelt out and agreed among the parties.
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“It is pertinent to recall at this juncture that prior to the 2020 agreement with the United States and the Island of Jersey, the Federal Government had signed an agreement for the return of over $300 million US Dollars in 2017 which was effectively deployed for the purpose for which it was agreed to be applied without any issue of reputation”, the statement added.
“The government of Nigeria remains fully committed to continued cooperation with the United States of America and other countries in a reciprocal manner.
“We urge the media and the general public to wait for the outcome of the court decisions and ongoing settlement efforts in this matter,” the statement said, adding that the government of Nigeria was strongly committed, in principle and practice, to fighting the menace of corruption. “A core component of Nigeria’s anti-corruption efforts includes the transparent management and utilization of returned assets as well as independent asset recovery efforts in a manner consistent with its domestic law, national interest and its obligations under international law.
“President Buhari remains the first president of Nigeria to make this commitment and has never and does not plan to deviate from these commitments contrary to statements in the media.
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To achieve the president’s objectives, the statement said, the federal government had engaged and continued to engage with international partners, including the United States, in the recovery and return to Nigeria of stolen assets. “Nigeria and the United States of America are continually cooperating in the recovery and return of those assets.
It said the government was also negotiating the recovery of assets from several countries and the agreements for the recoveries and the procedure for recoveries are always presented to the Federal Executive Council for approval and duly made public once the processes have been concluded.
No third-party interest was captured in the council memo that was approved by the council.
NAN
