Federal government on Monday confirmed receipt of $311 million looted by a late dictator, Sani Abacha.

Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr Abubakar Malami, in a statement by his Special Assistant on Media and Public Relations, Mr Umar Gwandu, said approximately $311,797,866.11 of the Abacha loot was repatriated from the US and Jersey.

According to Mr Malami, “The amount increased significantly from over $308 million as stated in a press release in February to over $311 million because of the interest that accrued from February 3, 2020, to 28th April, 2020, when the fund was transferred to Central Bank of Nigeria.”

The justice minister noted that the litigation process for the return of these asset titled “Abacha III” commenced in 2014, while the diplomatic process that culminated in the signing of the Asset Return Agreement on February 3, 2020, by the governments of Nigeria, the US and Jersey commenced in 2018.

“This agreement is based on international law and cooperation measures that set out the procedures for the repatriation, transfer, disposition and management of the assets,” he said.

“The recovery effort further consolidates on the established record of the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari-led Federal Government which has a history of recovery of $322m from Switzerland in 2018 which is being transparently and judiciously deployed in supporting indigent Nigerians as specified in the agreement signed with the Switzerland and the World Bank.”

Malami, who led the negotiation team, noted that the Tripartite Agreement and the process towards the implementation represents a major watershed in International Asset Recovery and Repatriation as it seeks to provide benefit to the victims of corruption.

“In line with the 2020 Asset Return Agreement, the fund has been transferred to a Central Bank of Nigeria Asset Recovery designated account and would be paid to National Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) within the next fourteen days. NSIA is responsible for the management and execution of the projects to which the funds will be applied,” the Minister has said.

The AGF said the federal government has committed that the asset will support and assist in expediting the construction of three major infrastructure projects across Nigeria, namely: The Lagos – Ibadan Expressway, Abuja – Kano Road, and the Second Niger Bridge.

He further said that the country was in the process of establishing a Project Monitoring Team to oversee the implementation of the projects and report regularly on progress made to the public.

“To ensure transparent management of the returned assets, the federal government will also engage a civil society organisation, who has combined expertise in substantial infrastructure projects, civil engineering, anti-corruption compliance, anti-human trafficking compliance, and procurement to provide additional monitoring and oversight.

“The process for the engagement of the CSO monitor has already commenced with the adverts placed in two Nigeria newspapers – Daily Trust and The PUNCH (4th March, 2020 and a Notice of Extension on 17th April, 2020), the Federal Tender Journal (9th and 23rd March, 2020), the Economist (14th March, 2020). The advert can also be found on the website of the Federal Ministry of Justice.

“It may be recalled that the recovered funds were laundered through the US banking system and then held in bank accounts in the Bailiwick of Jersey. In 2014, a US Federal Court in Washington D.C. forfeited the money as property involved in the illicit laundering of the proceeds of corruption arising in Nigeria during the period from 1993 to 1998 when Abacha was Head of State,” the statement added

PT