BREAKING NEWS, Business
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A committee set by the federal government in conjunction with the World Bank is to map out the best way to use the recovered money from the late General Sani Abacha loot which the country expects from Principality of Liechtenstein later this month
| By Maureen Chigbo | Jun. 30, 2014 @ 01:00 GMT
AFTER 16 years of trying to recover some of the money looted by late General Sani Abacha, Nigeria will on June 25,receive the sum of Euro 167 million ($227 million), from the government and Principality of Liechtenstein. The money is part of the looted funds recovered from the family of the late General Sani Abacha. Working under the leadership of the president, Muhammad Adokie, the attorney general of the federation, led the effort to recover the money with support Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, coordinating minister of the Economy and minister of Finance, and Colonel Sambo Dasuki (retired), national security adviser.
In line with the agreement reached with the Principality of Liechtenstein, the World Bank will assist in monitoring the utilisation of the funds in specific projects. The federal government has also set up a committee to ensure the proper utilisation of the funds. The inter-ministerial committee is to identify the best projects and programmes in which to invest the funds. President Goodluck Jonathan has also directed that part of the funds be saved in the Future Generations Fund, one of the funds managed by the Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority, NSIA, to help secure the economic future of both Nigerian youths and unborn.
The return of the funds was delayed by the suit instituted at the European Court of Human Rights, ECHR, by companies owned by members of the Abacha family alleging infringement on their rights to a fair trial and to peaceful enjoyment of their possessions. As a result, the Principality of Liechtenstein could not proceed with the return of the funds. To demonstrate the commitment of the federal government to retrieving the funds which belong to the Nigerian people, the attorney-general also filed a suit against Mohammed Abacha before the Abuja high court.
A statement issued by Paul Nwabuikwu, special adviser to the minister of finance and coordinating minister of the economy, said that as part of the negotiation to expedite the recovery of the funds, the Abacha family agreed to discontinue the suit before the ECHR while the federal government, on its part, subsequently withdrew the case against the family, thereby paving the way for the release of the looted funds by Liechtenstein.
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