A Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Mr. Femi
Falana, has asked the International Criminal Court to investigate the
allegation of diversion of the $2.1bn arms funds by a former National
Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki (retd.), and some military and
public officials.
Falana also called on the ICC to bring
to justice those who diverted the funds meant for the empowerment of the
country’s security forces.
In a petition dated January 19, 2016,
and sent to the Prosecutor of the ICC, Fatou Bensouda, Falana asked the
ICC to invite the Federal Government to provide written or oral
testimonies at the seat of the court on the stolen funds.
He alleged that the sum of $322m and
£5.5m from the money stolen and stashed abroad by the late Gen. Sani
Abacha, allegedly transferred to Dasuki by a former Finance Minister,
Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, to prosecute the war on terror, had been
illegally diverted.
He said it was unfortunate that part of
the stolen funds was used to fund the re-election campaign of former
President Goodluck Jonathan in the 2015 general elections.
Falana maintained that those who engaged
in the criminal diversion of the security funds should be held liable
for the death of about 25,000 people, who were killed by the Boko Haram
sect and the over 2,000,000 people, who were displaced by the
terrorists.
According to him, the Federal Government
needs to fulfil its obligations by cooperating with the ICC to arrest
suspected perpetrators of the stolen funds and provide other support to
the ICC.
The human rights activist stressed that
sufficient evidences gathered so far were sufficient to hold Dasuki and
others that were being prosecuted for the scandal responsible for crimes
against humanity.
The petition partly reads, “On account
of the deliberate refusal of the former military authorities to equip
and motivate the members of the armed forces involved in combat
operations, the insurgents have killed about 25,000 soldiers and
civilians including children and displaced over 2,000,000 people.
“The ICC needs to urgently commence an
investigation proprio motu on the allegations of the criminal diversion
of the security funds of $2.1bn and N643bn earmarked by suspected
perpetrators, with a view to determining whether these amount to crimes
against humanity within the Court’s jurisdiction.”