Human Right lawyer, Femi Falana has faulted the position of the Attorney general of the federation (AGF) Abubakar Malami SAN, stating that the said funds stolen from the Bayelsa State Government years ago were to be returned to the state government.
Falana narrated that a similar thing happened in the case of Joshua Dariye, a former Governor of Plateau State who was convicted for diverting state funds.
The Human Rights lawyer said giving the Ibori loot to the Federal Government was at variance with Section 162 of the constitution.
Recall that on Tuesday, Malami said that the Federal Government still expects over £100m (N527bn), stolen by James Ibori, a former governor of Delta State.
Malami said apart from Ibori loot, $100m traced to the late Head of State, Gen Sani Abacha, is also being expected.
The AGF said one condition for repatriating the UK Ibori loot was that the money has to be tied for a federal project including the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, the Abuja-Kano rail, and the second Niger Bridge.
Malami revealed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) has been signed in respect to this between both parties.
Meanwhile, former Presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), Omoyele Sowore, has asked students in Delta State to demand for the £4.2m looted assets by a former Governor of Delta State, James Ibori.
The British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Ms. Catriona Laing on Tuesday expressed the country’s readiness to return looted assets worth £4.2 million to Nigeria recovered from Ibori’s friends and family members.
Sowore in a post on his Twitter page said the repatriated funds by Ibori should be spent on schools in the state and not on federal government projects.
The tweet reads: “The recovered loot should be used to pay students of higher institutions in Delta . They must demand that the £4.2m Ibori loot being repatriated from the UK must be spent on schools in the state instead of accepting to pay exorbitant school fees like the N150k being charged at Delta State University. It is your money.”
