Abacha loot: Buhari’s administration judiciously utilized recovered funds – Malami

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Abubakar Malami, the minister of justice, said the looted funds recovered by the present administration under President Muhammadu Buhari is well utilized for public-oriented projects.

Malami explained that the present administration has recovered about $322 million from the Swiss government.

The minister made this known on Tuesday, March 3, in a statement issued by his special assistant on media and public relations.

Malami also disclosed that the World Bank and Civil Society Organisations monitored the application of the funds in the areas of Social Investment Programmes including N-power and school feeding.

Earlier, The Herald reported that the presidency dismissed media reports that the Federal Government will surrender $100 million from the recovered $308million Abacha loot to Gov. Atiku Bagudu of Kebbi.

A presidential source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, described the report as false.

The source, however, confirmed that the Buhari administration inherited litigation in which the past Obasanjo administration ceded 100million dollars to Bagudu, an agreement also being challenged by the US government.

He said: ”It is important that the fog of misinformation and disinformation on the position of the Buhari administration on the ongoing recovery from the United States of the Abacha loot be cleared.

”The administration is currently talking to the the US government on the return of three pots or tranches of Abacha loot. First is the 308 million dollars which has already been agreed to.

”Yes, there is a USD 100 million yet to be resolved, which the Obasanjo administration ceded to Sen. Abubakar Bagudu, an agreement that is being litigated because the US government itself does not recognize that Obasanjo-Bagudu settlement. Then, there is a third tranche of USD 60 which is also a subject of private litigation by the Abacha family.”

 

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