Recovered $321m Abacha loot to be used for social development

The Federal Government has disclosed that the $321 million recovered from funds stolen by the late Nigerian Head of State, Gen. Sanni Abacha will be spent on social development programmes.

The said amount had long been kept with banks in Switzerland.

Special Adviser to President Muhammadu Buhari on Justice Sector Reforms, Mrs. Juliet Ibekaku-Nwagwu who revealed this also expressed the need for Civil Society Organisations and the media to monitor the use and also hold government accountable.

Mrs. Ibekaku-Nwagwu expressed the need for Civil Society Organisations and the media to monitor the use and also hold government accountable.

She said: “It is important that CSO and the Media should be able to have the capacity to continue to hold government accountable on all fronts.

“Recently, we attended the Global Forum on Assets Recovery in Washington D.C. And CSOs from Nigeria were part of government delegation where Nigeria signed an MoU with Switzerland and World Bank on the return of the $321 million.

“We urge the CSO and the Media to monitor the funds which Nigeria has agreed to invest in social development, particularly in the cash transfer programme that the president is ready to implement.”

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The presidency official  stated that the cash transfer programme will be managed with the World Bank and CSO.

According to her, “the idea is that CSO will have all the information to be able to know who and who is benefiting from the funds, who and who are actually poor and who are benefiting.”

General Sani Abacha was Nigeria’s military head of state from November 17, 1993 to June 8, 1998 when he died suddenly.

Last October, the Attorney General of Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, has revealed that negotiation with Switzerland on the return of $321 million recovered from the late Abacha family had been concluded.