'Dirty money' to be returned to Nigeria in landmark deal

                 

  LANDMARK AGREEMENT: British MP Robert Goodwill and Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) Abubakar Malami

THE FEDERAL Government of Nigeria has signed a landmark agreement with the British Government committing to the return of stolen assets hidden in the UK.
The UK confirmed its commitment to recovering and returning stolen assets to the west African country and to shed London's reputation as a haven for 'dirty' money, according to Vanguard Nigeria.
Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) Abubakar Malami signed on behalf of Nigeria while Britain was represented by Minister of State for Immigration, Robert Goodwill.
The agreement means that bank accounts, properties, cars and other goods seized in Britain from Nigerian offenders will be returned on the condition that the Federal Government will ensure that stolen assets recovered from both within and outside the country will be put to sensible uses; and that such assets will not be re-looted.
The deal comes in the wake of the anti-corruption summit hosted in the capital earlier this year.
The high-profile summit attended by heads of states including Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari was nearly derailed after comments by then Prime Minister David Cameron were broadcast on television.
Cameron described the African country as “fantastically corrupt” unaware that camera’s had caught his controversial comments.
Responding to the political gaffe, Buhari, who delivered a keynote speech at the opening of the summit, made clear that he had no interest in apologies and simply called for the return of looted assets.
“What do I need an apology for? I need something tangible,” he said.
“I’m not going to demand any apologies from anybody, what I’m demanding is a return of assets."
The value of assets harboured in the UK in various forms are unconfirmed, but the amount expected to be repatriated over the coming years is believed to be at least tens of millions of pounds.
High-profile examples of instances where government officials have abused their positions to steal assets from Nigeria to launder in London include that of James Ibori, a former cashier at a Wickes DIY store in Ruislip, who later became governor of the country’s oil-rich Delta State.

FANTASTICALLY CORRUPT: Former Delta State Governor James Ibori is serving 13 years for fraud
He was jailed for 13 years at Southwark crown court in 2012 for fraud involving up to £150m from the Nigerian public purse.
He allegedly bought four homes in Britain, including a £2m mansion in Hampstead and properties in St John's Wood and Dorset.
The agreement was signed in Nigeria's capital of Abuja on August 30.
The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) makes mention that “both countries recognised that they have a mutual interest in ensuring that returned assets are not at risk of being misappropriated again”.
Goodwill, the MP for Scarborough and Whitby, hailed the agreement as a mechanism by which monies could be returned and said his trip had reinforced the joint determination of Britain and Nigeria to tackle corruption.
He said: “This government is committed to attacking criminal finances, making it harder to move, hide and use the proceeds of crime.
“Crime of this sort is not confined to our own borders and it is therefore essential that we work with international partners to tackle it. This agreement spells out how the UK and Nigeria will ensure that criminal finances that have been misappropriated from Nigeria will be returned.”
The Commons home affairs select committee warned earlier this year that London “is a centre for money laundering,” while Goodwill made clear that a successful operation would be a signal that this would no longer be the case.
He said: “Our ability to recover and return stolen assets should send a clear message to all who may seek to harbour such assets that there is no safe haven in the UK.”
As part of the agreement, 40 other jurisdictions, including British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies will automatically share beneficial ownership information relating to companies, trusts, foundations, shell companies and other relevant entities and legal arrangements.
The US and Switzerland have signed similar agreements.
The visit also resulted in the signing of an agreement on the return of illegal immigrants and the proper profiling of their nationalities through the use of biometric and biographic data.


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