The United States Bureau of
African Affairs (AF) has disclosed that Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)
presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, was listed as an aide of Senate
President Bukola Saraki.
In a tweet by Lauretta Onochie, a
media aide to President Muhammadu Buhari, the Bureau of African Affairs which
is part of the US Department of State and which is charged with advising the
Secretary of State on matters of Sub-Saharan Africa said he was in Washington
DC on diplomatic arrangements.
“We cannot apprehend Atiku
because of our diplomatic ties with Nigeria, he’s being booked as an ‘aide’ to
Nigeria’s Senate President,” AF said.
It would be recalled that Atiku
who for 12 years was unable to enter the US following corruption indictment
against him, arrived Washington on Thursday in company of Nigeria’s Senate
President Bukola Saraki.
He is staying at the Trump
International Hotel in Washington DC and is expected to attend several meetings
with Nigerians in Diaspora.
In a 2010 report titled “Keeping
Foreign Corruption Out Of The United States” the United States Senate PERMANENT
SUBCOMMITTEE ON INVESTIGATIONS Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs chaired by Carl Levin named Atiku as one of four Politically Exposed
Persons, PEP, to watch out for.
The subcommittee report narrated
how Jennifer Douglas Abubakar, a US citizen and fourth wife of Atiku between
2000 to 2008 helped her husband bring over $40 million in suspect funds into
the United States, including at least $1.7 million in bribe payments from
Siemens AG, a German corporation, and over $38 million from little known
offshore corporations, primarily LetsGo Ltd. Inc., Guernsey Trust Company
Nigeria Ltd., and Sima Holding Ltd.
“Over half of the suspect funds,
nearly $25 million, were wire transferred by the offshore corporations into US
bank accounts opened by Ms. Douglas,” the committee report read.
“For most of the time period
examined, the US banks with those accounts were unaware of Ms. Douglas’ PEP
status and allowed multiple large wire transfers into her accounts from the
offshore corporations.
“As, over time, each of the banks
began to question the wire transfers into her accounts, Ms. Douglas indicated
that all of the funds came from her husband and professed little familiarity
with the offshore corporations actually sending her money,” the report added.
“Bank records indicate that Ms.
Douglas used most of the funds placed into her accounts to support a lavish
lifestyle in the United States, paying credit card bills and household expenses
in the range of $10,000 to $90,000 per month, including substantial legal and
accounting bills.
“She also transferred funds to
accounts she opened for the Gede Foundation, a nonprofit corporation she
established in 2002, and the American University of Nigeria (AUN), a university
that Mr. Abubakar founded in 2003, and whose name reflects its association with
American University in the United States.”
“An additional $14 million of the
suspect funds were wire transferred by two of the offshore corporations, LetsGo
and the Guernsey Trust Company, to American University to pay for consulting
fees related to AUN.
“American University officials
told the Subcommittee that they understood the funds came from Mr. Abubakar and
never inquired why the wire transfers were sent by unfamiliar offshore
corporations.
“At least another $2.1 million
was wire transferred by the Guernsey Trust Corporation to accounts controlled
by Edward Weidenfeld, a US lawyer who provided legal services to Ms. Douglas,
Mr. Abubakar, and AUN.
“Mr. Weidenfeld explained that
the funds paid for the Abubakars’ legal expenses and an account set up for AUN,
and that he had assumed the funds came from Mr. Abubakar.”
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Una too foolish. So US dont know Atiku again? And he had neetings scheduled with US government officials. Onochieeee. Ahhh. Can a media aide be anymore unintelligent?
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