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Group Carpets Malami Over FG’s Reason For Usurping £4.2m Ibori Loot
The League of Professionals for Strategic Advocacy, Delta State, yesterday, said the contention by Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, SAN, that the Federal Government would appropriate the £4.2million seized from a former governor of Delta State because it completed the recovery process with Britain, was the suspicious reading of the law.
The group is a joint statement by Prince Obaro Unuafe and Pius Mordi, convener and chairman, yesterday, at Asaba, said, “After it emerged that Britain had agreed to repatriate the £4.2million seized, the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation, Mr Abubakar Malami, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, unilaterally announced that the Federal Government has taken possession of the money and will deploy it to fund some ongoing capital projects in various parts of the country.
“The attorney general’s unilateral action is illegal, immoral and a blatant attempt at appropriating the commonwealth of the people of Delta State.
“Justifying his decision, Malami claimed that the law that was violated by Ibori was a federal law”.
According to him, the parties of interests involved in the repatriation of the funds were national and not sub-national governments.
“The attorney general’s contention that the Federal Government is the victim of the crime, not Delta State, simply because the processes associated with the recovery were consummated by the Federal Government is a dubious interpretation of the law.
“By choosing to personally announce the grabbing by Aso Rock of the money about to be repatriated, Mr Malami sought to give the action a veneer of legality. He is wrong.
“Firstly, there is no discernible legal basis for his stance. As a sub-national government, Delta State could not have entered negotiations with Great Britain, a sovereign state. Only the Federal Government can negotiate with another sovereign state. In effect, Malami’s argument that since ‘the processes associated with the recovery were consummated by the Federal Government’, then it becomes a victim of crime is duplicitous, dubious and amounts to double jeopardy for the people of Delta State.
“Secondly, there is precedence where recovered looted funds were returned to the state that was the actual victim of the crime. In 2012, the Federal Government recovered over £5million stolen by late Bayelsa State Governor, Dieprieye Alamieyeseigha, from Britain and handed it back to the state government.
“This same principle should apply to the indication from Malami that another £100million may be repatriated when Chief Ibori’s landed property in Britain are disposed of. The proceeds belong to Delta State, the real victim of the crime.
“We consider Malami’s action a brazen effort at appropriating what rightfully belongs to the people of Delta State. We are vehemently opposed to this ill-advised action of the attorney general.
“He should immediately discontinue his course of action and initiate the process of handing over the recovered money to the people of Delta State as represented by their government.
“It will be quite understandable if the Federal Government should extract a written commitment from the state that the money should be directly deployed to funding critical capital projects. That will be consistent with the agreement it reached with the governments in the countries from where the funds were repatriated.
“Beyond this, it is beyond Malami’s remit and, indeed the Federal Government, to divert the recovered money to fund projects in states other than Delta.
“The League of Professionals for Strategic Advocacy is prepared to seek the intervention of the Judiciary to stop this heist on the wealth of the people of the state.
“Malami’s action is only the latest in the series of ferocious assaults on the principle and spirit of federalism which the Muhammadu Buhari administration has been waging with the attorney general superintending,” the group said.
Nobel Laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka, has called on Nigerians to reject silence in the face of extrajudicial killings and other abuses of human rights.
Soyinka stressed that accountability and civic courage remain essential to rebuilding public confidence in the nation’s institutions.
He made the call during the 28th Wole Soyinka Lecture held in Port Harcourt, last Friday as part of activities marking his 92nd birthday.
The lecture, themed “Reclaiming the Nigerian State through Accountability, Justice and Civic Courage,” drew participants from different sectors of society.
The renowned playwright and human rights advocate said the country’s greatest tragedy was not only the unlawful killings carried out by state and non-state actors, but also the silence that often follows such incidents, allowing perpetrators to evade justice.
According to him, indifference by citizens to abuses of power and violations of fundamental human rights has contributed to the persistence of extrajudicial killings and other forms of injustice across the country.
Soyinka said he dedicated this year’s lecture to victims of unlawful killings, noting that the event was intended to honour individuals who had lost their lives as a result of failures within the justice system and society’s inability to protect the sanctity of human life.
He stressed that the lecture was dedicated to what he described as the basic unit of every society – the human being, and urged Nigerians to place greater value on human dignity irrespective of ethnicity, religion or social status.
The Nobel Laureate recalled several incidents of violence, including the fatal shooting and killing of a young man in Ugheli in Delta State by a police officer, and the mob killing of Deborah Yakubu in Sokoto State sometime ago, lamenting that many of those responsible are yet to face justice.
He expressed concern that some perpetrators of violent crimes had openly admitted their actions without fear of prosecution, describing such situations as evidence of serious failures within the nation’s justice system.
Soyinka maintained that when justice is delayed or denied, public confidence in state institutions continues to erode, thereby encouraging further violations of human rights.
Responding to critics who accuse him of promoting religious or ethnic divisions whenever he spoke on such issues, Soyinka dismissed the allegations and pointed out that his advocacy has always centred on the protection of human life and the rule of law.
He urged Nigerians to remain vigilant and continue demanding justice in cases of alleged extrajudicial killings, including the recent shooting of a young man by a police officer, stressing that every life deserves equal protection under the law.
The literary icon also recalled an earlier pledge by a past incoming president to make public the files relating to unresolved assassinations and extrajudicial killings, questioning the status of the promised investigations.
He challenged citizens to continue asking questions about unresolved cases, insisting that justice, accountability and respect for human dignity are indispensable to building a peaceful, democratic and inclusive Nigerian society.
The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) has clarified that there was no fire at Terminal 2 of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, contrary to its earlier advisory.
Earlier yesterday, FAAN had announced that a fire incident had occurred at Terminal 2 of the nation’s busiest airport, and assured that its Aerodrome Rescue and Firefighting Service had been deployed to contain the situation.
There were also reports that activities were briefly disrupted at the airport yesterday after smoke was seen inside parts of the terminal.
Videos circulating online showed passengers kept standing outside the terminal while firefighters responded to the incident.
However, in an update issued less than two hours later by the Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection, Henry Agbebire, and posted on FAAN’s official X handle, the authority said preliminary findings showed that the smoke seen at the terminal was caused by the discharge of the facility’s FM-200 fire suppression system.
“Further to our earlier advisory regarding the incident at Terminal 2 of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) wishes to provide the following update,” the statement read.
“Preliminary findings indicate that there was no fire at the terminal. The smoke observed within the affected area resulted from the discharge of the terminal’s FM-200 fire suppression system. The reason for the activation of the fire suppression system is currently being investigated,” FAAN stated.
The authority said normal operations had resumed at the terminal while investigations were ongoing to determine the cause of the incident.
“Normal operations have since resumed at the terminal, while detailed investigations are ongoing to determine the exact cause of the incident,” the statement added.
The authority thanked passengers, airlines, airport users and other stakeholders for their understanding and cooperation.
FAAN appreciated the understanding and cooperation of passengers, airlines, airport users and all stakeholders, and reiterated its commitment to the safety and security of all airport operations.