The Federal Government has welcomed an offer of the
Swiss government to return $321m stolen funds from Nigeria under the Abacha
government, and is now developing a framework that will aid the repatriation of
such stolen assets starched abroad by those who have looted from the country’s
resources in the past.
Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, SAN, made this
disclosure today at the Presidential Villa, Abuja during a meeting with a Swiss
delegation led by the country’s Federal Councillor and Head of its Foreign
Affairs Department, Mr. Didier Burkhalter and the Swiss Ambassador to
Nigeria, Mr. Eric Mayoruz.
“We guarantee that recovered assets would be put to
uses for which they have been intended,” according to the Vice President who
explained that the framework being developed would ensure exactly that.
Prof. Osinbajo said the framework once finalized will
be made available publicly, and it would cover the whole spectrum from the
source of the stolen asset to how it would be managed once recovered.
He said “the framework will guarantee that returned
assets will be used in the interest of the people of this country.” To
ensure this, in the proposed 2016 Budget, the federal government has
already included anticipated funds from the recovery effort on the funding side.
Commending the Swiss government on its assistance
in repatriating the country’s stolen assets, the Vice President said the
federal government appreciates the Swiss government for their very laudable
efforts, noting that the “Swiss has always been at the forefront of returning
stolen assets and ensuring that the people of Nigeria gets the benefit.”
Later the Attorney-General of the Federation and
Justice Minister, Mr. Abubakar Malami, SAN, signed an agreement described as a
"Letter of Intent" between the Swiss government and the Nigerian
government on the restitution of illegally-acquired assets forfeited in
Switzerland. Mr. Burkhalter signed the letter for the Swiss government.
Under the agreement the Swiss government will award
to Nigeria $321m “of funds illicitly acquired by the Abacha family,
initially deposited in Luxembourg and confiscated by the Judiciary of the
Republic and Canton of Geneva pursuant to a Forfeiture order dated 11th
December 2014.”
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