Abacha Loot: Adeosun Denies Reports on Legal Fees
- No issues with Funds Recovery
BY EDMOND ODOK, ABUJA – Minister of Finance, Mrs Kemi Adeosun has debunked claims that controversy currently surrounds alleged payment of $16.9 million fees to two lawyers contracted to handle the Abacha loot recovery for the Federal Government.
In a statement by her Special Adviser, Media and Communications, Oluyinka Akintunde, the Minister said the so-called “strongly-worded letter to the President” objecting to such payment does not exist.
The statement was responding to media reports that the Minister has refused to approve the fees payment to the two lawyers for their role in recovering Abacha funds worth $321 million.
Akintunde’s statement read in full:
“The attention of the Honourable Minister of Finance, Mrs Kemi Adeosun, has been drawn to false media reports of a “strongly-worded letter to the President” objecting to the payment of $16.9 million fees to two lawyers for the recovery of Abacha funds.
- The Minister wishes to dissociate herself and the Federal Ministry of Finance from recent malicious and misleading media reports on the Abacha refunds. The Minister had at no time written any letter to the President or any member of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) on the payment of lawyers for the Abacha recovery.
- She also refuted the flawed media reports of controversy surrounding the Abacha recovery, disclosing that the sum of US$322,515,931.83 was received into a Special Account in the Central Bank of Nigeria on December 18, 2017 from the Swiss Government.
- For the avoidance of doubt, there is no controversy concerning the recovery of the Abacha monies from the Swiss Government.
Signed:
Oluyinka Akintunde
Special Adviser, Media & Communications to the
Hon. Minister of Finance
