The seizure of more than $110 million in assets from many nations has been announced by Prince Lateef Fagbemi, the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice.
At the House of Representatives Committee on Justice’s 2024 budget defense and 2025 proposal presentation of the Ministry, which was presided over by Hon. Olumide Osoba on Tuesday, he revealed this.
The $52.88 million in assets connected to former Petroleum Resources Minister Diezani Alison-Madueke that the US government recently retrieved were among the several that Fagbemi acknowledged but did not go into detail about.
According to Fagbemi, the Ministry has created templates to help state governments with contract assessments, resolving problems that have previously resulted in risks and damages.
He pointed to previous errors, mentioning the contentious Process and Industrial Developments (P&ID) case as an example, such as hiring unqualified legal counsel in well-known cases.
“Hiring attorneys only on the basis of their patronage has proven to be expensive. Competence is now our top priority, and we make sure that attorneys have the education and experience needed for commercial arbitration,” he stated.
The AGF emphasized that although state governments are free to engage in international transactions, the federal government is responsible for any ensuing debts and retains the ability to withhold such sums from state allocations via the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) process.
Stricter processes are now in place to guarantee deals with foreign firms conform with Nigerian regulations, Fagbemi promised, preventing future issues.
He emphasized how the 2023 Arbitration and Prosecution Act has improved Nigeria’s standing in arbitration law.
“When doing business here, foreign businesses must abide by our laws. While taking use of our resources, they cannot prescribe arbitration laws and locations outside of Nigeria,” Fagbemi said.
The Supreme Court’s ruling on local government autonomy, which upheld local governments’ financial and administrative autonomy and prohibited state governors from arbitrary dissolutions or fund seizures, was one of the major accomplishments for which Osoba praised the Ministry.
Additionally, he praised the Ministry for winning the P&ID Case, stating that the court’s ruling to overturn the earlier ruling spared Nigeria significant financial obligations and maintained the country’s resources and economic stability.
Osoba said, “These results show the strength of our judiciary and a commitment to justice and the rule of law.”
Read Also: Tinubu’s Reforms and Insurance Bill Boost Aviation Growth, Says Abiru
Nonetheless, Osoba accused the Ministry of reallocating authorized funds without parliamentary authority and chastised it for not disclosing information about the N4.7 billion spent on legal services in 2024.
Fagbemi gave lawmakers the assurance that measures are being taken to improve legislative oversight compliance and openness.
The Committee asked the Ministry to prioritize changes that strengthen Nigeria’s legal system and economic stability and to increase accountability.
