The Special Assistant to President Muhammdu Buhari on social
media, Lauretta Onochie on Monday said that the Federal Government has not
returned the £4.2 million recovered from former Gov. James Ibori to Delta
State.
The Federal Government on
Tuesday said that the £4.2m looted by former Governor, James Ibori recently
repatriated from the United Kingdom has been returned to Delta State.
Accountant-General of the Federation, Mr. Ahmed Idris, made
the claim when he was grilled by the Reps committee on Assessment and Status of
All Recovered Loots Movable and Immovable Assets from 2002 to 2020.
The claim was contrary to the position of the Minister of
Justice and Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami (SAN), who had
earlier stated that the state would not benefit from the recovered loot.
Malami had explained that Delta state was not captured in
the agreements signed with the British Government, which was a precondition for
the release of the money.
According to him, the recovered loot will be used to execute
other projects.
However, Onochie in a Facebook post on Wednesday explained
that Delta State did not receive the looted funds because Nigeria may lose the
opportunity to receive more looted funds, if it breaks the agreement it signed
with the British government.
She wrote, ”We know what we heard but we also know the
facts. Let me remind us. Before we start “admonishing, praising and decamping”,
let’s pause for a minute and breathe in and out!
”Was the recovered Ibori loot returned to the Dr. Ifeanyi
Okowa-led Delta state government? No.
”Now, let me remind us. The Attorney General of the
Federation, Abubakar Mallami, the British High Commissioner, Catriona Laing and
other relevant agencies held a press conference openly telling the world when
the money would be returned, and the specific projects the money was approved
for. Openly.
”When it was delayed, the Attorney General informed
Nigerians of the reason for the delay. When the loot arrived, Nigerians were
informed too. The conditions under which the funds were repatriated, still
stand. Again, no penny was paid to the Delta State government.
”If we break the conditions for getting this chicken amount,
how do we get the elephant amount that is still coming?
”The British High Commissioner is also keeping an open eye
on those projects.
”I know what we all heard. But we also know the facts. Pres.
Muhammadu Buhari runs an open government. The Attorney General is part of the
open policy. Nothing hidden.
”Nigerians would be the first to know if he decides to break
an agreement made with Britain. I very much doubt it. He’s an Honourable
man.God bless Nigeria.”
Click to signup for FREE news updates, latest information and hottest gists everyday
Advertise on NigerianEye.com to reach thousands of our daily users
No comments
Post a Comment
Kindly drop a comment below.
(Comments are moderated. Clean comments will be approved immediately)
Advert Enquires - Reach out to us at NigerianEye@gmail.com