Abuja, Nigeria – By Alltimepost.com
Nigerian and Swiss Governments have come under serious condemnation over the secrecy surrounding the conditions and agreements on the return of the
$380 million dollars looted from Nigeria by former military dictator, late General Sani Abacha.
In its reaction to recent statement by relevant Swiss authorities that the 380 million U.S. dollars, amounting to some N75.2billion funds are to be returned soon to Nigeria, rights group, Africa Network for Environment and Economic Justice, ANEEJ questioned all the conditions and agreements relating to the return of such money.
The organization’s Executive Director Rev. David Ugolor presented its position in Abuja on Wednesday, saying all the conditions and agreement between the Swiss, Nigerian governments and the World Bank were shrouded in secrecy and conditions that lacked clear guidelines and which run counter to transparent dealings.
“ANEEJ is worried that all the conditions and agreements between the Swiss, Nigerian governments and the World Bank are shrouded in secrecy and conditions that do not have clear guidelines, and which run counter to transparent dealings.”
“We are concerned that the precedence of best practice set in 2005 when the Swiss government opted to return N500million being part of the stolen monies in a very transparent and open process, involving all stakeholders is now being undermined with the planned return of N75.2billion Abacha loot to Nigeria by the
Swiss Government, and to be ‘monitored’ by the World Bank,” Rev. David Ugolor said.
Rev Ugolor drew from the lesson of monitoring the repatriated 500million USD in 2005 under PERMFAR, which he said reinforces his organization’s worries that the absence of any credible legal framework to deal with issues of stolen assets, as it stands in the present arrangement, sends the wrong signals.
Besides, he said a situation like this increases levels of anxiety of concerned civil society organisations “like ours that have fought long and hard to ensure that repatriated funds from the Swiss government to Nigeria do not end up being re-looted.”
“We condemn allowing the Abacha family to go away with some of the loot which certainly fuels the culture of impunity in looting public funds,” he said.
ANEEJ, he continued is calling on the Nigerian Finance Minister and Head of the Government’s economic team to come clean on the particulars of the transaction with the Abachas.
He said the Minister should ensure that government abides by the provisions of various international statutes in involving Civil Society Organisations working on this issue both at home and in Diaspora in the processes of repatriation and utilisation of the asset.
“We want a framework put in place that such repatriated funds are spent on projects and programmes that would be visible and appreciated by all Nigerians
and serve as a disincentive to looting of public treasury.”
ANEEJ called on the World Bank and the Nigerian Government to make public the details of the negotiations and how they intend to monitor the use of the funds and when.
The organization also urged the Swiss government to continue to support the process leading to the repatriation of all monies stolen from Nigeria as a safeguard against a re-looting of the repatriated funds.
