Attorneys General from the 36 states filed an appeal in March against a ruling that barred the federal government from taking the projected $418 million deduction from state funding. The governors requested in a letter dated April 4, 2022 that the FG refrain from deducting from funds accruing to them and all local government councils as liquidation for the alleged judgment debts related to the Paris Club loan refund after receiving a letter from the minister of finance, budget, and national planning dated November 11, 2021.
However, the AGF stated that the governors created the liability, whose payment they had also indemnified, in response to questions from journalists at the 46th Session of the State House Ministerial Briefing organized by the Presidential Communications Team at the Aso Rock Villa, Abuja, on Thursday. He pointed out that when the refund was given to the states, a portion of the money was also sent to the consultants, but finally, the governors stopped making payments and asked for an out-of-court settlement.
Malami claims that the president, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (ret. ), was asked to make the payments after the governors made their decision. He clarified that the request was sent to the Office of the Attorney-General for legal advice. The AGF's Office conducted the necessary checks and found no indications of fraud, according to Malami. He gave the following justification for what he did: "On the matter of the Paris Club, you mentioned that there is a presidential direction that payments should not be made, and then payments were made in violation of that directive. You must be aware of the circumstances leading up to the liability's emergence.
"Now, the responsibility or debts from the Paris Club ruling were in fact liabilities made by the Governors Forum on their own. What am I saying? All of the governors gathered in the Governors Forum and decided to hire consultants to help with the recovery of the Paris Club after deliberating for a while. Therefore, the decision to hire the consultants was made by the Governors Forum under the auspices of the Federal Government.
"Two, the governors jointly and separately requested the amount from the federal government once eventually successes were noted in connection with the reimbursement. And one of the parts of the claim submitted to the federal government for review was a part pertaining to the payment of these consultants. "Two, the governors jointly and separately requested the amount from the federal government once eventually successes were noted in connection with the reimbursement. The payment of these consultants, which is currently the topic of dispute, was one of the claims' components that was included in the claim that was submitted for the federal government's review. That implies that the governors independently acknowledged the consultants, acknowledged their claim, and made that claim to the federal government.
He explained that the forum, without the FG's intervention, issued partial payments to the consultants, recognising their culpability for the same, when the claims were subsequently processed and paid to the NGF.
The AGF observed that the contractors eventually took the forum to court when the governors stopped paying them. "And in court, what transpired? They consented to the judgment. They pleaded with the court to let them reach a settlement outside of court. They agreed and conceded that such payments be given to the consultants in writing by signing the terms of the settlement and committing to its provisions. "President Muhammadu Buhari's administration asked the FG to follow the ruling and make the payment. All of the governors' petitions were forwarded by the President to the Office of the Attorney General for review. "I advised to the President that we subject this claim, the consent judgment, to scrutiny by the government agencies based on the judgment's face value and the undertones associated with the consultant services, which was, in my opinion, the same treatment we meted out to P&ID.
"Mr. President gave his approval, and I instructed the EFCC and DSS to investigate these charges and provide a report to the Attorney General's office. These agencies also reported on the matter and came to the conclusion that there is no underlying issue. The payment dependant may still face sanctions from the authorities. He clarified, "Now, that was the background.
According to the Justice Minister, the FG went further to request indemnity from the governors. He claimed that way, it would be guaranteed that the payments were paid with the NGF's written consent. He continued by saying that the NGF's new leadership has launched an initiative despite the FG operating in accordance with the Supreme Court's ruling. "They immediately launched a new legal action, challenging the payment, the earlier agreement, and the indemnity, and the Federal High Court dismissed their case," Malami continued. However, a senior NGF official claimed that as the case was still pending in court, the governors would not react to Malami in a formal capacity. He claimed that the AGF should let the court make the decision because the President had ordered that the payment be halted until the case was resolved by the court. I don't know what he (Malami) wants to accomplish, the person said. But Buhari has given the go-ahead for no payment to be paid. So, is it okay for him to go and make more payments now? He has exhausted all options. "He is attempting to resolve this issue in another manner. It stayed put. Courts are still considering it. There is a defense. Even one of the consultants decided to handle his own case.
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