Abacha Loot: SERAP Peeved Over FG’s Claim Of No Records On Stolen Funds

By Ayodele Oluwafemi

The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project, SERAP, has expressed dissatisfaction towards the response of the Federal Government to its request on records of spending and exact amount of public funds stolen by a former military head of state, Gen. Sani Abacha.

SERAP noted that the FG stated that it has no records of the exact amount stolen by Abacha and no records of spending of $5bn recovered loot between 1999 and 2015, while disclosing that only $630m was recovered and $308 was spent on road repairs.

The Transparency and accountability organization had accused FG of having no records of the spending of about $5 billion recovered Abacha loot for the period between 1999 and 2015.

FG’s response was sequel to the Freedom of Information (FoI) requests sent to Mr. Abukabar Malami, SAN, Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice and Mrs. Zainab Ahmed, Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, requesting: “information on the exact amount of public funds stolen by Abacha, and details of spending of about $5 billion recovered loot since the return of democracy in 1999.”

According to SERAP, in a statement dated 15 March 2020, by its Deputy Director, Mr. Kolawole Oluwadare, only Malami sent a reply to its FoI requests.

In the reply dated 26 February 2020 but which SERAP said it received 9 March 2020, Malami said: “We have searched our records and the information on the exact amount of public funds stolen by Abacha and how recovered loot was spent from 1999–2015 is not held by the Ministry.

“However, a total of $322 million was recovered from Switzerland in January 2018 and the funds were used for Social Investment Project. Also, $308 million was recovered from the Island of Jersey in collaboration with the USA. While awaiting the transfer of the money to Nigeria, it has been designated for the following projects: Lagos—Ibadan Expressway; Abuja—Kano Expressway, and Second Niger Bridge.”

Dissatisfied with Malami’s reply, SERAP said: “The failure to provide information on the exact amount stolen by Abacha and on the spending of recovered loot for the period between 1999 and 2015 implicitly amounts to a refusal by the government. The government also failed to provide sufficient details on the spending and planned to spend of the $630 million it said it recovered since 2018.

“In the circumstances and given that Mrs Zainab Ahmed has failed and/or refused to respond to our FoI request, we are finalising the papers for legal actions under the FoI Act to compel the government of President Muhammadu Buhari to fully and effectively comply with our requests.”

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