The restitution of more than $23.439 million in Abacha loot has been agreed upon by the Federal Government and the US Government. In accordance with the agreement, some forfeited property related to the MECOSTA/Sani Mohammed Asset known as Abacha V will be managed.
Abubakar Malami, SAN, Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, signed the agreement on behalf of Nigeria, and Mary Beth Leonard, US Ambassador to Nigeria, signed it on behalf of the US government. The agreement relates to the sharing, transfer, repatriation, disposition, and management of the aforementioned asset.
The contract signing event took place on Tuesday in Abuja at the office of Mr. Abubakar Malami, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation.
When the money is returned, according to Malami, it would be used for important current projects including the Abuja-Kaduna Road, the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, and the 2nd Niger Bridge as part of the Presidential Development Infrastructural Funds (PIDF) program.
Ambassador Mary Leonard, who spoke at the event, stated that the US government seized these cash in retaliation for General Abacha and his cronies breaking US law by transferring these assets through the US and into UK banks.
According to Leonard, the recent repatriation will increase the total amount of money the U.S. has returned to the nation to over $334.7 million.
