: Why We Can't Cooperate With Nigeria - US.
By Tunde Abatan, Deputy Sunday Editor

The United States Government has said it is constitutionally barred from releasing names of top ranking Nigerians involved in a N21billion bribery scandal involving the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) projects between 1999 and 2007.

It says except a proper request is made by the Nigerian government to indicate that the disclosure is in the public interest there is nothing it could do.

The latest position of the US. Government came through a response to a request by some US. based Nigerians, led by a lawyer, Ugo Asobie, to the Justice Department, asking for full disclosure of the names and identification of the Nigerians involved in the scandal.

Following Sunday Independent publication of the earlier refusal of US. prosecutors to make public the names of Nigerians involved in the scam, the US. based Nigerians petitioned the Justice Department to disclose the names in the interest of the Nigerian people.

In the protest letter dated November 11, 2008 and made available to Sunday Independent, the Nigerians said they based their petition on the provisions of the American Freedom of Information Act and that such denial would not help the United States government's policy of helping to fight corruption in Nigeria.

However, in its response via a letter signed by its Assistant Director, William G Stewart 11, to the Nigerian Attorney who wrote on behalf of the Nigerians, the Executive office of the United States Attorneys wrote that while it had received the Freedom of Information request which contains records concerning a third party, such cannot be released except with the express authorisation and consent of the third party. It said except it could produce, "a proof that such third party is deceased or a clear demonstration that a public interest in disclosure outweighs the personal privacy interest and that significant public benefit would result from the disclosure of the requested records."

The department states further that since the applicants have not furnished a release, death certificate or public justification for release, the release of records concerning a third party would result in an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy and would be in violation of the Privacy Act,5.US.C. 552a.

Said the letter: "These records are also generally exempt from disclosure pursuant to sections (b) (6) and (b) (7) (c) of the freedom of Information Act, 5U.S.C &552."

The department however declared that it would only release, if requested, any public records maintained in its file, such as court records and news clippings, without the express authorisation of the third party, a death certificate or public justification for release, adding that "if the Nigerians desire to obtain public records, if public records exist in its files, it should re apply with a letter asking for the public documents."

It, however, gave a condition that should the requestor obtain the written authorisation and consent of the third party for the release of the records, it should submit a new request for the documents accompanied by the written authorisation.

It also gave a caveat that the decision not to disclose the information may be appealed within the next 60 days from the date of the letter of rejection of the request.

Asobie and his Nigerian group say they are not relenting as they have decided to appeal the recent denial by the US. Justice Department.

The legal practitioner said in his latest protest letter that since he could not show that the subject of the request was dead and could not provide authorisation for the third party requests, his appeal would be based on the grounds that "the public interest in disclosure outweighs any personal or private interests" and that "significant public benefit would result from the disclosure of the request records mentioned above."

He however, cited Germany vs. Personal Labour Relations Board and Forest Guardian vs. United States Federal Emergency Management Agency and other cases in the past.

As for the private interest concerned as cited by the justice department, he said that "the Information that is the subject of this instant Freedom of Information Act request is the identity of the persons Mr. Albert Jackson Stanley claims to have paid bribes to between 1995 and 2004 regarding the NLNG project."

He also argued further that in this instant case, the disclosure of the names of the Nigerian officials Mr. Stanley claims to have bribed will aid the public to understand the activities of the US. government with regard to furthering the US. foremost foreign policy objectives in Nigeria towards combating corruption.

It would be recalled that one Albert Jackson Stanley had confessed to US. investigators that he bribed a number of Nigerian officials to obtain favours for the American companies handling various Liquefied Natural Gas projects in Nigeria between 1995 and 2003, from the Sani Abacha regime through the Abdulsalami Abubakar government to the first part of the Olusegun Obasanjo government. The US. investigators had filed Stanley's confessional statements in a US. District Court but refused to disclose the names of the Nigerians involved in the bribery scam.

The Nigerian government is yet to react to the demands of the US. investigators with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission telling Sunday Independent that it could not act without specific authorisation and documented evidence from the Federal Government.

One would have expected the EFCC to swing straight into action over this kind of thing.
Which kind country be this sef?