Paris Club Refund: Malami Denies Pushing for Payment of Contractors

Alex Enumah in Abuja

The Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami (SAN), has debunked media report that he has been pushing for suspicious payment to some contractors involved in the Paris and London Club refunds to local government councils in the country.

Two online newspaper outfits had accused Malami of pushing for payments of judgments sums awarded to Took Nigeria Limited and Ted Edwards/Edwards & Partners against the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON).

He told journalists in Abuja yesterday that the media reports were “mischievous and perfidious.”

Malami said that he initially wanted to ignore the reports because any discerning mind could easily see “that the report lacks merit as evidenced by not only contradictory submissions but also a hasty collection of feeble fabrications, unsubstantiated concoctions and figment of imagination of the writer.”

He noted that the current administration has been applying extra-ordinary due diligence to avoid anything suspected to be suspicious liability whose antecedent rooted in past administration.

The AGF disclosed that he had requested security agencies to investigate the veracity of the claim in view of the lessons learnt from the fraudulent P&ID case.

“The genesis of the said judgment debts was based on the fact that some affected local governments and the ALGON instituted action against the Federal Government of Nigeria in suit no: FHC/ABJ/CS/130/13 – LINAS International LTD & 235 ORS V. Federal Government of Nigeria & 3 ORS to recover the sum of $3,188,079,505.96. Judgment was delivered in favour of the plaintiffs on December 3, 2013, (that is years before President Muhammadu Buhari came to office and long before Malami was made a Minister).

“Consequently, upon a Garnishee Order Absolute was granted in 2016 directing the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) as Garnishee to pay $3,188,079,505.96 to the local government. The Garnishee Order was granted by H.B Yusuf (Hon, Justice),” he said.

The minister however noted that the online media chose to turn a blind eye to the judgment and its adverse effect on Nigerian economy when it was delivered and in effect chose to attack him who had exerted extra efforts in saving the nation from the scourge of consequential liability.

Malami said: “In fact even when it became inevitable that the payment had to be effected with the consent of the Governors Forum and the ALGON, the office of the AGF had to extract undertaking and indemnity from Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) and the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON) in 2019.

“The fact is very clear that in consideration of the financial status and the volume of the transaction, due diligence relating to contractual undertones and the judgment were carried out by the Office of the AGF in order to guard the government coffers from being robbed by some unscrupulous agents like the case of P&ID. The Office of the AGF and Minister of Justice took steps to be double sure that about the engagements.

“The office wrote letters to the Economic and Fiancial Crimes Commission, the Department of State Service and the Association of Local Government of Nigeria (ALGON) to furnish the HAGF with facts that will guide the legal opinions to be proffered by the HAGF.”