Sagay, Dabiri-Erewa raise the alert on Nigeria losing $550m Abacha loot to US

The Chairman of the Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption, (PACAC), Prof. Itse Sagay and Senior Special Assistant to the President on Foreign Affairs and Diaspora, Abike Dabiri-Erewa, have alerted that Nigeria may lose $550million Abacha loot to United State (US) government.

This was made known on Thursday at a media parley on asset recovery, an event PACAC and Office of the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Foreign Affairs and the Diaspora put together.

Sagay who was apparently unhappy with the unpleasant situation, wondered why US and other countries where stolen wealth from Nigeria was stashed, would continue to give conditions very difficult to be met before the stolen funds will be repatriated.

He said, “Nigeria presently stands to lose another $550m recovered from the Abacha family to the US, contrary to the earlier promise by the U.S. to return same to Nigeria.”

According to him, the money represented a separate tranche from the earlier $480m forfeited to the US following a court judgment in August 2014.

He frowned that the US has so far failed to honour earlier promises made in respect to repatriating the stolen money.
“Out of the Abacha loot for instance, Switzerland seized over $505.5m between 2004 and 2006. The UK recovered $2.7m from Alamieyeseigha’s account in London in 2005. Alamieyeseigha’s home and other real estate as at 2005 was estimated at over $15m,’’he said.

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Dabiri-Erewa, on her part said the looted fund ought to be returned to Nigeria without conditions. Arguing that asset recovery was not the same thing as asset returning, she expressed displeasure over the unhelpful attitude of the countries in possession of the stolen funds.

She said, “America has over $400m that have been officially recovered as stolen funds from Nigeria. But America is keeping the funds, they are telling us about technicalities; they are saying we recovered doesn’t mean we can return.
“We want every Nigerian in Diaspora, friends of Nigeria, to join this committee in demanding that every Nigeria’s stolen fund recovered in any part of the world should be returned to Nigeria. The person who steals is a criminal; the person who keeps known stolen funds is also a criminal.

“You can’t give us aid of one billion dollars and keep one billion dollars of funds you have recovered from Nigeria. So we will join the committee to embark on an advocacy with Nigerians outside the world to appeal to these nations to do everything possible to return what belongs to Nigeria.”

 

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