The $308 million looted by former Head of State, the late Gen Sani Abacha, and stashed abroad might be retrieved by the United States Government if it is “stolen again” in Nigeria after being repatriated, according to the Secretary of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr. Olanipekun Olukoyede.
The Federal Government and the United States government signed a repatriation pact on February 4 for the return of the looted money.
Speaking during an anti-corruption walk organized in collaboration with the Ministry of Youths and Sports Development and the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) in Lagos, Olukoyede revealed the details of the US stance. He mentioned that during the negotiation of the treaty, the US representatives issued a warning that they would reclaim the money if it is stolen again in Nigeria.
There is speculation that Abacha stole about $5 billion during his 5-year regime as Nigeria’s head of state. A significant amount of the looted money has been recovered from different countries worldwide.
The repatriation pact specifies that the Nigerian government will refund any funds lost due to new corruption or fraud to the account established to hold the returned assets. It also outlines that the funds will be used by the Nigerian Independent Sovereign Authority for three infrastructure projects in strategic economic zones across Nigeria. Additionally, the agreement includes mechanisms for monitoring the implementation of these projects, external oversight, and the requirement for Nigeria to repay any funds lost as a result of any new corruption or fraud to the account established to hold the returned assets.