NewzBy Johnbosco Agbakwuru The Presidency has clarified that the ongoing Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) litigation involving President Bola Tinubu before a United States federal court is a civil records-disclosure dispute and not a criminal case against the President. It said: “For clarity, the matter is a civil records-disclosure dispute under the United States Freedom of Information Act. It is not a criminal case against President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, nor has the court found him guilty of any criminal wrongdoing.” The Presidency, in a statement issued by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, titled: “Clarification on the ongoing Freedom of Information Act case in Washington, DC”, gave a background to the case.
It stated that the matter came up 23 years after the American Consulate in Lagos, in a letter dated February 4, 2003, informed the then Inspector-General of Police, Mr Tafa Balogun, that an FBI records check found no criminal arrest records, wants or warrants for then-Governor Bola Ahmed Tinubu. According to the statement: “In 2022, Mr Aaron Greenspan, who is known to work with Nigerian opposition figures including David Hundeyin and Atiku Abubakar, submitted FOIA requests to several United States government agencies seeking records relating to President Tinubu. “After the agencies withheld certain records or declined to confirm or deny their existence, Mr Greenspan commenced Civil Action No.
23-1816 before the United States District Court for the District of Columbia in 2023. “The court subsequently permitted President Tinubu to participate in the proceedings as an intervenor. “During the proceedings, the Defendants asserted the “Glomar defence”, a standard defence that US law enforcement agencies invoke from time to time.
It simply means the government agency is not “in a position to deny or admit” the existence of an investigation. “It protects government personnel and the techniques and sources law enforcement agencies use to investigate and prosecute crimes. “Based on the invocation of this defence, the United States District Court granted summary judgment in favour of the CIA, EOUSA, Department of State, Department of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
“It ruled that they be removed from the proceedings, leaving aspects of the claims involving the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the … The Presidency has said that it is the United States District Court for the District of Columbia that can determine whether the records concerning President Bola Tinubu will be released or withheld in the ongoing Freedom of Information Act, FOIA, case before it, and not Alhaji Atiku Abubakar. Read Also: We were offered $3m to stop campaign against Tinubu — Atiku-linked US lobbying firm Also, the Presidency explained that it was a civil records-disclosure dispute, and neither was it a criminal case against President Bola Tinubu, nor has the court found him guilty of any criminal wrongdoing.
According to the Presidency in a statement on Thursday, “The release or withholding of records under FOIA does not, by itself, establish criminal liability. “The case concerns access to government records and the proper application of statutory exemptions. The Nigerian media should note that this case is exclusively within the control of Judge Beryl A.
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