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World Bank Distances itself from list of Nigerian LootersLAOLU AKANDE NEW YORK A list containing the names of 21 former Nigerian officials and military officers with alleged sums of looted money in foreign banks have been disowned by officials of the World Bank in Washington D.C. For about a month now the list which mentions varying amounts of money the Nigerians have stashed away in several currencies including US dollars, British pounds, German Marks and Swiss Franc have circulated in diplomatic circles, among international financial operatives and several email lists on the internet. According to the list, World Bank is listed as the source with a reference mentioned in Financial Times of London June 24, 1999. On the list, it was noted that the World Bank passed on this list to President Obasanjo. Earlier this year, Obasanjo was reported, (at the time Nigeria was inching close to a deal with its creditors on the debt relief deal) as saying he had been asked about Nigerian funds stashed abroad by former officials and also given such a list and there was no official denial of this from the Nigerian government. According to a popular international website on debt issues, Odious Debts Online, as reported on July 27, 2005, "in exchange for partial debt relief, the Paris Club of creditor nations have handed Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo a list of well-placed Nigerians to go after and prosecute for allegedly stealing and stashing public funds in overseas bank accounts." The website, well read in western capitals said "according to various reports, President Obasanjo confirmed the list publicly after he was pressured by a delegation from the state of Kwara to reveal the conditions of the Paris Club debt relief deal." Similarly, usually reliable sources said the World Bank had first passed such a list to Obasanjo several years back, and went ahead to leak it to the Financial Times when the Nigerian president refused to take any action on the list except regarding the Late General Sani Abacha. In the case of Abacha, President Obasanjo took steps to pursue the information made available to the Nigerian government. But in the case of others especially General Ibrahim Babangida, Obasanjo simply ignored the information. A UN funds recovery expert Jack Blum based in Washington DC had disclosed to this reporter in the past that he met with Obasanjo on the recovery of the funds in the earlier days of the administration, but Obasanjo showed interest only in pursuing the Abacha loot and showed no interest in the alleged IBB loot which was more than Abacha's, according to Blum and the list now widely in circulation. On the list Abacha was listed as stashing abroad 9.1 billion British pounds, 4.09 billion Swiss Francs, $200m US dollars and 500 million German Marks. The list puts Babangida's loot at 6.2 billion pounds, 7.41 billion Swiss Franc, 2 billion US dollars and 9 billion DeutscheMarks. Indeed recently, the World Bank entered into an agreement with the Swiss government to ensure a sum of $290 million recovered from the Abacha loot is spent by Nigeria on poverty reduction programme. This reporter spoke with several World Bank and International Finance Corporation, IFC, officials in the last few weeks, and the official line remains a straight denial of the list. John Donaldson, a senior communication officer at the World bank said the World Bank is not a policing institution and if it has any information it would pass it to the appropriate authorities. His colleague Herbert Boh, a communication officer at the World Bank, point blank disassociated the World Bank from such a list. Said he :"The World Bank is not in possession of any such list and did not send any such list out to President Obasanjo or to any media outlet." Asked whether the World Bank can retain or have access to such information, Boh said the "World Bank does not have such information." But he conceded that the World bank has received "numerous other requests on this list, " but categorically denied that such a list is from the World Bank and "is NOT connected to the World Bank." (emphasis his) Speaking with the International Finance Corporation, the World bank agency that deals with the private sector, Corrie Shanahan, IFC's spokesperson also stated that the the IFC does not maintain such a list. But Shanahan however added that "as part of our due diligence with regard to anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism (AML-CFT), we subscribe to a number of commercial list services," suggestting that the IFC may indeed have access to such information as contained in the list. Shanahan also noted that basically such information contained in the list were bank secrets. Observers say that may explain why the World bank and its agency are trying hard to distance themselves from the list. This reporter also conducted a web search on the archives of the Financial Times, since the list mentioned a reference to that paper's edition of June 24, 1999. But a preliminary search did not turn up any useful information although a search of the actual print edition was not immediately possible. Other Nigerian former officials whose names featured on the list are Generals Ibrahim Babangida, whose name was listed first, Abdusalami Abubakar, Mike Akhigbe, Jerry Useni, Alhaji Ismaila Gwarzo, Umaru Dikko, Paul Ogwuma, Mohammed Abacha, Abdulkadir Abacha, Wada Nas, Tom Ikimi, Dan Etete, Don Etiebet, Major Al Mustapha, Anthony Ani, Bashir Dalhatu, General Wushishi, Hassan Adamu, T.Y. Danjuma and General Ishaya Bamaiyi in that order. LOOTED MONEY DISCOVERED IN FOREIGN BANKS NAMES OF DEPOSITORS
SOURCE: WORLD BANK TO THE PRESIDENT OF NIGERIA | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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