By Egena Sunday Ode
The Presidency has clarified that the ongoing Freedom of Information Act case before the United States District Court for the District of Columbia is a civil records-disclosure dispute and not a criminal case against President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
In a statement signed by Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, on Thursday, the State House said the court has made no finding of criminal wrongdoing against the President.
According to the statement, the matter dates back 23 years to a February 4, 2003 letter from the American Consulate in Lagos to then Inspector General of Police, Tafa Balogun. The consulate said an FBI records check found no criminal arrest records, wants, or warrants for then Lagos Governor Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
In 2022, Mr Aaron Greenspan submitted FOIA requests to several US government agencies seeking records relating to President Tinubu. The statement said Greenspan is known to work with Nigerian opposition figures including David Hundeyin and Atiku Abubakar.
After some agencies withheld records or declined to confirm or deny their existence, Greenspan filed Civil Action No. 23-1816 in 2023. The court later allowed President Tinubu to participate as an intervenor.
The Presidency said the defendant agencies invoked the “Glomar defence,” a standard US law enforcement position where an agency is “not in a position to deny or admit” the existence of an investigation in order to protect personnel, sources and techniques.
Based on that defence, the court granted summary judgment in favour of the CIA, EOUSA, Department of State, Department of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service, and removed them from the proceedings.
The case continues with aspects involving the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Drug Enforcement Administration.
In compliance with court orders, the FBI and DEA produced 399 pages of records with portions redacted under US law. The plaintiff challenged those redactions.
The Department of Justice, representing the FBI and DEA, opposed full disclosure citing five FOIA exemptions: Exemption 3: Grand Jury transcripts and information protected by the Pen Register Act;
Exemption 5: Attorney-work product and attorney-client privileged communications; Exemption 5: Documents prepared for law enforcement purposes; Exemptions 6 and 7(C): Information that could lead to an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy; Exemptions 7(D) and 7(E): Identities of confidential sources and law enforcement techniques.
President Tinubu, on the advice of his lawyers, has also asserted his rights under FOIA Exemption 7(C), the statement said.
The Presidency said the plaintiff has until September 11, 2026 to file any opposition and reply, while the FBI, DEA and the intervenor have until September 18, 2026 to respond.
“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 statement said.
It added that the matter is exclusively before Judge Beryl A. Howell of the US District Court, who will decide based on evidence, applicable law and parties’ arguments.
The statement by Onanuga also addressed recent comments by Mr Karl von Batten, saying he and his client are not parties to the case and that public commentary portraying them as central to the proceedings is inaccurate.
“The Presidency therefore urges the media and the public to distinguish verified court proceedings from partisan speculation,” Onanuga said.
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