The Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, has for years disregarded repeated warnings against the suspicious $418 million judgment debts said to be owed by the states and their local governments with respect to the Paris Club refunds, PREMIUM TIMES can authoritatively report today.
But despite the warnings, including a report by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), against the legitimacy of the debts, the minister has been contributing to what anti-corruption activists consider a desperate push for the settlement of the purported creditors through monthly deductions from the allocations of states and local governments.
This newspaper, now in possession of copies of tens of official correspondences and documents concerning the matter, exclusively reported how the AGF, along with two other powerful officials, has been working against the demand by the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) that the legitimacy or otherwise of the huge debts be determined through a forensic probe.
Others with whom Mr Malami has been countering the governors are Ibrahim Gambari, the chief of body of workers to President Muhammadu Buhari, and the Minister of Finance, Zainab Ahmed.
Some people who claimed to be sellers of the judgment creditors, our newshounds accrued, have presented as lots as $40million in bribes to the Chairman of the NGF, Governor Kayode Fayemi, to interrupt his resistance to the agreement of the suspicious debt.
But the Ekiti State Governor rejected the overtures, insisting that the money owed and the judgments round them ought to be thoroughly investigated inside the hobby of the Nigerian humans, the ones familiar with the problem said.
However, following PREMIUM TIMES disclose on the matter last week, a few publications were orchestrated inside the media to smear the NGF chair, claiming he become blocking the charge due to the fact his demand for a reduce of 10 in keeping with cent of the splendid quantity changed into rebuffed.
The judgment debts
The controversial debt arose from diverse court judgments ordering that some “contractors” and “experts” be paid for sure offerings and tasks finished for the diverse states and the 774 local governments.
Some of the claimants have been stated to be experts who helped the states and local governments to steady restoration of finances over-deducted from their allocations between 1995 and 2002 to service then London and Paris Club loans.
On the other hand, the contractors amongst them were purportedly engaged to execute sure projects in all of the 774 nearby governments in anticipation that they might be paid from the Paris Club refunds.
PREMIUM TIMES pronounced how beyond leaderships of the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON) and the NGF had given tacit support to six claimants in securing courtroom judgments to validate their claims to their stocks of the refunds.
NGF’s query
The judgment money owed, which currently stand at $418,953,670.Fifty nine (amounting to about N159 billion at a conservative trade price of $1 to N380.Five), are being contested by means of the NGF management below Mr Fayemi.
The Mr Fayemi-led NGF is traumatic a probe to ascertain the provider rendered by way of the stated lenders to prove or disprove their entitlement to the deliberate humongous bills.
PREMIUM TIMES’ earlier document on the matter indicated that President Buhari, following protests with the aid of the NGF in January, directed that the actions for the agreement of the debts be suspended.
But that has no longer deterred the Mr Gambari-led camp from continuing to push for the bills to the creditors as quickly as feasible.
Warnings obtained by way of AGF
Mr Malami has acquired as a minimum three warnings, including an EFCC report intimating him that as a minimum part of the money owed is unjustifiable.
PREMIUM TIMES, after its first record on the matter, received two letters authored by successive presidents of ALGON in 2018 and 2019 protesting the judgment claims credited to Ted Iseghoghi-Edwards and RIOK Nigeria Limited.
In the letter dated September 10, 2018, in regards number, ALGON/NP/FMJ/VOL1/001/18, and which become received by the AGF workplace on September 13, 2018, the then ALGON President, Gambo Kagara, knowledgeable Mr Malami that neither Mr Iseghoghi-Edwards nor his regulation corporation, worked for the affiliation as claimed by means of them within the restoration of the refund of the over-deducted Paris Club loans to be entitled to any charge.
“ALGON as an association did not at any time interact Ted Edwards/Edwards and Partners to recover on its behalf or on behalf of Local Governments, finances associated with the refund of Paris and London debt over-deductions,” Mr Kagara’s letter study in element.
Mr Kagara’s letter, which changed into a respond to an in advance enquiry through Mr Malami, explained that ALGON definitely engaged the services of some attorneys that represented the association and via extension its contributors throughout the litigation technique that resulted in favour of the association.
But it delivered, “A perusal of all of the applicable court statistics will show that neither Dr Ted Edward nor Edwards and Partners had been counsel on information during the complete court court cases.”
Concerning RIOK, which is laying declare to a court docket judgment awarding it over $142 million (approximately N54 billion) as its percentage of the Paris Club refunds, Mr Kagara stated that there has been no evidence the corporation done the contracts it became provided by using ALGON in December 2013 to be entitled to the economic declare.
His letter to Mr Malami reads in component, “ALGON through an award letter dated December 17, 2013, offered a settlement to RIOK Nigeria Limited for the availability of boreholes and different water reticulating apparatus in all of the 774 Local Governments and Area Councils in Nigeria.
“This become sooner or later accompanied by using a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) done by means of both events.
“The complete contract sum turned into $318,807,950,596, to be funded from the Paris Club refund funds accruable to Local Governments.
“From ALGON’s facts, there's no proof that RIOK has accomplished the required job.”
It introduced that there was also “no conversation from the organisation informing ALGON of the job execution/of completion.”
“No task inspection has been performed via ALGON and RIOK has not officially surpassed over any site of activity finishing touch; no certification of task finishing touch has been issued to RIOK; therefore, the association categorically denies execution of the paintings by using RIOK to justify any claims for charge,” the letter introduced.
ALGON’s second warning to Malami
ALGON, underneath a new administration led via Kolade Alabi as president, wrote some other letter dated October 8, 2019, to Mr Malami, restating the affiliation’s position on the judgment debts as canvassed in Mr Kagara’s September 10, 2018 correspondence.
In the brand new letter in regards number, ALGON/LSD/AGF/VOL1/002/19, which turned into acquired through the AGF workplace on October 15, 2019, Mr Alabi additionally stated Mr Malami’s in advance queries on the problem.
“The queries had been replied to thru ALGON’s letter dated September 10, 2018,” Mr Alabi said in component.
He in addition stated that the “feedback” from the affiliation’s attorney “underscores and re-emphasises ALGON’S function as expressed in our previous letter to the office of the AGF concerning the referred to events.”
Restating the previous position of the affiliation, Mr Alabi stated “Dr Edwards/Edwards and Partners Law Firm were by no means at any time engaged through ALGON EXCO to get better on its behalf or on behalf of the nearby governments, funds associated with the Paris /London Club Debt Refunds.”
He additionally recalled that ALGON entered right into a contractual settlement with RIOK Nigeria Limited for the availability of boreholes and water reticulation equipment within the 774 local authorities areas within the usa with the settlement aimed “to be funded from the Paris/London Club refund proceeds because of local governments.”
But Mr Alabi stated once more that “The settlement was by no means completed in component or full because the condition precedent for its execution by no means materialised. Consequently, RIOK can't claim payment for a non-achieved venture.”
He also begged the AGF to use his “precise offices to make certain that budget belonging to local governments are not used to settle doubtful and illegal claims.”
The Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, and a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Femi Falana, have been copied the letter.
EFCC record
The ALGON’s letters aren't the best warnings that Mr Malami obtained.
Mr Malami, in his letter, dated July 17, 2020, sent to the President’s Chief of Staff, Mr Gambari, recounted an EFCC record thinking the legitimacy of the $159 million being claimed via Mr Iseghoghi-Edwards, one of the six judgment creditors
He said within the letter that the “recent EFCC record suggests” that Mr Iseghoghi-Edwards “isn't entitled to this sum”.
The minister additionally knowledgeable the Chief of Staff within the letter that, even though he had initially referred the problem to the EFCC for investigation, the file of the fee become not served on his workplace.
But despite admitting the life of a damning EFCC file on the debatable money owed, Mr Malami did no longer attempt to discourage Mr Gambari on its settlement or at least propose its suspension till further probes are achieved.
The judgment lenders
PREMIUM TIMES has drastically reviewed the details of the Paris Club-associated judgment creditors from a chain of letters and documents despatched to the presidency by way of the AGF and the Minister of Finance at diverse times.
The claimants encompass a former member of the House of Representatives, baby-kisser and lawyer, Ned Nwoko, who is laying declare to $142,028,941 (about N54 billion) via a consent judgment he obtained from the Federal High Court in Abuja inside the fit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/148/2017.
Three beneficiaries laying claim to $143,463,577.Seventy six (approximately N54.6 billion) thru a judgment of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court within the in shape marked FCT/HC/CV/2129/2014 are Riok Nigeria Ltd, Orji Nwafor Orizu, and Olaitan Bello.
From the $143,463,577.76, Riok Nigeria Limited has a proportion of $142,028,941.95 (about N54 billion), Mr Nwafor is entitled to $1,219,440.Forty five (about N464 million), at the same time as Mr Bello is posturing to be paid $215,159.36 (N81.7 million).
The claimant with the singular lion share is Ted Iseghoghi Edwards, who is laying declare to $159,000,000 (about 60.5 billion) thru a judgment he received from the FCT High Court in healthy range FCT/CV/1545/2015.
A firm, Panic Alert Security System Limited, owned by way of George Uboh, is also laying claim to $forty seven,831,920 (approximately N18.2billion) primarily based on some other “consent judgment” it obtained in match number FHC/ABJ/CS/123/2018, which turned into filed as lately as 2018.
As in advance stated by using PREMIUM TIMES, the suits leading to the judgments had been either feebly defended or outrightly consented to by means of beyond leaderships of ALGON and NGF.
The present day NGF leadership underneath Mr Fayemi is questioning the legitimacy of the complete debt.
Malami’s frantic push
PREMIUM TIMES suggested formerly that Mr Malami is the only one which has been inside the picture from inception, a number of the three top officers pushing for the settlement of the judgment debts.
The duo of Mr Gambari and Mrs Ahmed best got involved in the count from the factors their predecessors stopped.
Mr Malami’s roles are so vital in the count that his office is worried in the compilation of the listing of all of the judgment money owed against the authorities and the verification of the judgment debt lists compiled via the Federal Ministry of Finance.
He was also accountable for the categorisation of the judgment debts into three groups – the Paris Club refunds-related debts; Top Priority Debts due to enforcement movements, and General Debts incurred by using the Federal Government’s MDAs.
He additionally recommended the government on the level of priorities to assign to each of the kinds of money owed.
PREMIUM TIMES observes from his diverse correspondences on the problem that his prison advice become consistently tilted towards how the Paris Club refund-related money owed might be settled at once.
Ever-moving positions
A assembly of officers from the federal ministries of finance and justice, the Debt Management Office (DMO), the Budget Office. And the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), which hung on June 12, 2017, had encouraged 4 alternative resources of price range to defray the judgment money owed.
The recommended resources had been: Budget and or supplementary price range, promissory notes, Federal Government bonds; and additional-budgetary votes.
Following the recommendations by the committee, Mr Malami, in his letter dated June 16, 2017 with regard quantity, MJ/LIT/ABJ/SH/JD/598/Vol.1/17, suggested the President to approve the price of the judgment debts from budgetary resources.
But in her own recommendation to the presidency through her letter dated September 27, 2017, with reference range FMF/OHMF/JDAA/VP/1/2017, then Minister of Finance went out of doors the committee’s recommendations and recommended that the finances need to be sourced from “recovered funds”.
Following the Minister of Finance’s advice, Mr Malami fast dropped his former recommendation that the finances must be sourced thru budgetary method.
President Muhammadu Buhari speaking with Fertilizer Producers and Suppliers Association of Nigeria (FEPSAN)
In his letter dated November 3, 2017, with regard number MJ/LIT/ABJ/SH/JD/598/101/16, he cautioned President Buhari that the accredited judgment debts ought to be paid from recovered budget as suggested by the Minister of Finance.
But the then Chief of Staff, Abba Kyari, did no longer accept the advice of defraying the money owed from recovered budget.
Mr Kyari, in a letter dated November eight, 2017, in regards quantity SH/COS/08/B/395, despatched to the Ministry of Finance, sought expert advice on “opportunity sources of funds that may be utilised to settle the relevant judgment debts apart from recourse to recovered price range.”
In the give up, the Minister of Finance, Mrs Ahmed, via her letter dated October 6, 2020, asked Mr Gambari to advise the president that the maximum viable alternative is to settle all categories of judgment creditors through the issuance of promissory notes.
She also suggested that lenders in Category A (Paris Club Refunds Related Debts) be settled via “same month-to-month quantity deductions from statutory allocation because of states and nearby councils over a duration of 10 years.”
Mr Malami had no objection to the brand new recommendation through Mrs Ahmed and actually in addition recommended that the consent of either the Federal Executive Council (FEC) or that of the National Assembly could not be required for the issuance of the promissory notes.
Mr Buhari on December 24, 2020, authorised the advice for the issuance of the promissory note as tabled before him by way of Mr Gambari.
The NGF in the end received Mr Buhari’s clean directive suspending the settlement of the money owed pending a forensic audit.
But for the reason that January, the NGF has not been able to stable the dedication of Mr Gambari’s camp to abide with the aid of the President’s fresh directive.
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