The Federal Government, on Tuesday, confirmed the receipt of the sum of £4,214,017.66 of the loot associated with the family members of the convicted former governor of Delta State, James Ibori, from the United Kingdom government.
The Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), disclosed this in a statement made available to newsmen by his Special Assistant on Media and Public Relations, Dr Umar Gwandu.
The statement said the recovered loot has been credited into the designated Federal Government account with naira equivalent value of the amount on May 10, 2021.
It would be recalled that Malami signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the repatriation of the Ibori loot on behalf of the Federal Government of Nigeria.
The minister had, on May 3, 2021 said the Federal Government was expecting the return of the the looted funds, which the UK government had, on March 9, 2021, promised to return within two weeks.
Malami had earlier attributed the delay in the return of the fund to some necessary documentation, saying that, “Documentations with the banks in different countries often take longer than anticipated. We anticipated two weeks but we are not in control of the banks.”
He promised that his office and other relevant government agencies will keep the general public informed once the Ibori loot are received and confirmed.
The AGF, while signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the UK government in March, said the £4.2 million will be deployed towards the timely completion of the Second Niger Bridge, Abuja–Kano expressway and the Lagos–Ibadan expressway.
The return of the Ibori loot, according to Malami, was a demonstration of the recognition of reputation Nigeria earns through records of management of recovered assets stolen from Nigeria in the execution of public-oriented projects.
– Nigerian Tribune