Alamieyeseigha still under investigation –FG, UK

Chief Diepreye Alamieyeseigha

A former governor of Bayelsa State, Chief Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, might be arrested anytime he steps out of Nigeria, as he is still under investigation in some countries.

This is notwithstanding the presidential pardon granted him by the National Council of State after a meeting on Tuesday in Abuja.

Also granted pardon were a former Chief of Staff, Supreme Headquarters, Gen. Shehu Musa Yar’Adua; ex-Chief of General Staff, Lt.-Gen. Oladipo Diya; ex-Minister of Works, the late Brig.-Gen. Abdulkarim Adisa; ex-Minister of Comminucations, Maj-Gen. Tajudeen Olanrewaju; Major Bello Magaji; Alhaji Mohammed Lima Biu; and an erstwhile Managing Director of Bank of the North, Shettima Bulama.

Diplomatic sources told our correspondent that the ex-governor risks arrest because the international investigation of his involvement in corruption and money laundering is still on course.

The investigation is a multilateral effort by the governments of Britain, United States, South Africa, Bahamas and Seychelles as well as the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and the World Bank under the Stolen Assets Recovery Initiative.

The STAR case against Alamieyeseigha reads in part, ““Between the start of his period of office in May 1999, to late 2005, Alamieyeseigha accumulated (outside Nigeria) known properties, bank accounts, investments and cash exceeding £10m in value. His portfolio of foreign assets included accounts with five banks in the UK and further accounts with banks in Cyprus, Denmark and the United States; four London properties acquired for a total of £4.8m; a Cape Town harbour penthouse acquired for almost £1m, possible assets in the United States, and almost £1m in cash stored in one of his London properties.

“Some of the foreign assets were held in his name and that of his wife, but the bulk of them were held by companies and trusts incorporated in the Bahamas, the British Virgin Islands, South Africa, and Seychelles.”

The British High Commission declined to comment on the issue on Thursday.

A terse text message sent to our correspondent reads, “We do not discuss investigations. So, we cannot comment.”

Alamieyeseigha had previously been detained in London on charges of money laundering in September 2005. At the time of his arrest, the Metropolitan Police found about £1m in cash in his London home. Later they found a total of £1.8m in cash and bank accounts.

He jumped bail in London by allegedly dressing like a woman and returned to Nigeria.

However, the Federal Government on Thursday gave the assurance that it would press ahead with the recovery of the assets and ensure their return to Bayelsa State.

The Nigerian government had through the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission instituted an assets recovery suit at the Royal Courts of Justice, Strand, London against the former governor, his wife, Margaret; some companies – Santolina Investment Corporation, Solomon and Peters Limited, Falcon Flights Incorporated, Ebco Associates Limited, Fiduciary International Limited, HBOS Plc, Royal Albatross Properties 67 (PTY) Limited; and a Swiss bank, UBS AG.

The court had on February 27, 2007 refused the Nigerian government’s attempt to obtain a summary judgment to recover immovable assets and funds in bank accounts totalling over £10m, which were allegedly held in the names of Alamieyeseigha, his wife and some corporate entities.

Justice Lewison had on February 27, 2007 refused the application on the grounds that Alamieyeseigha was not present in court to defend himself. The judge also said the evidence presented by the Nigerian government was based on testimonies to EFCC by individuals, some of whom changed their accounts.

Nothing has, however, been heard about the suit since then.

Asked whether the suit at the London high court would be withdrawn, Adoke replied said, “No. It will continue and all recoveries shall pass on to the Bayelsa State Government.”

Meanwhile, the United States, the Coalition Against Corrupt Leaders and a former member of the House of Representatives, Dino Melaye, have condemned the Federal Government’s pardon for Alamieyeseigha and Bulama.

Of the pardoned lot, Alamieyeseigha and Bulama were the only ones convicted for corrupt practices after their arraignment by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.

However, the US Government through its embassy in Abuja decried the Nigerian government’s decision to grant pardon to officials convicted for graft.

In a post on Twitter, the US government wrote, “The USG (United States Government) is deeply disappointed over the recent pardons of corrupt officials by the GON (Government of Nigeria). We see this as a setback in the fight against corruption.”

In a swift reaction, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Friday summoned the Deputy Chief of Mission of the United States Embassy to protest the tweet credited to its spokeswoman, Deb MacLean.

In a statement, the ministry said it conveyed the protest via a diplomatic note, in which it “strongly condemned the comment from the US Embassy in Abuja, which it described as undue interference and meddlesomeness in the internal affairs of Nigeria.”

The statement added that it “was not the first time a government in Nigeria or elsewhere would grant state pardon to individuals who have committed one crime or the other.”

The ministry further stressed that “the pardon granted is entirely consistent with the provisions of the Nigerian Constitution.”

The ministry said it hoped “that the Embassy of the United States of America would henceforth desist from making unwarranted comments on Nigeria’s internal affairs which are capable of undermining the friendly relations that exist between them.”

Melaye, who is the executive secretary of the Anti-Corruption Network, described the presidential pardon on both men as a “great disservice to upcoming generations.”

In an interview with Saturday PUNCH, he predicted that the eighth Senate would have corrupt figures like Alamieseiyegha, Bode George and James Ibori.

He said, “Goodluck Ebele Jonathan by that national pardon announced his romance and marriage with corruption. It is absurd, nonsensical and signals a government that promotes corruption and corrupt persons.

Also speaking, CACOL Chairman, Mr. Debo Adeniran, stated that the pardon given the ex-governor was proof that Jonathan lacks direction.

He said, “President Goodluck Jonathan is proving every Nigerian right by the hour that he is rudderless. It is unthinkable that a presidential pardon could be handed a man like Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, who bled his state’s coffers white during his tenure as the governor because such pardon is only given for political offences, not criminal.

PUNCH