Professor Munzali Jibril has sparked debate after defending former Nigerian military Head of State Sani Abacha against long-standing allegations that he looted public funds during his time in power.
Jibril made the remarks during an interview with Trust TV, where he addressed the controversial issue commonly referred to as the “Abacha loot,” a term used to describe funds believed to have been taken from Nigeria’s treasury during the late military leader’s administration.
During the discussion, the former Executive Secretary of the National Universities Commission argued that Abacha should not be described as a thief. According to him, the widely held narrative that the former military ruler looted state funds does not accurately reflect what happened during that period.
“The so-called Abacha loot, Abacha was not a thief, he did not loot anything,” Jibril said during the interview.
Abacha ruled Nigeria from 1993 until his death in 1998, a period marked by strong political control and international criticism of the military government. Following his death, investigations by Nigerian authorities and foreign governments led to the recovery of billions of dollars believed to have been diverted from public coffers during his administration.
However, Jibril disputed the interpretation that the funds were stolen. Instead, he suggested that Abacha placed Nigeria’s money with trusted friends and associates abroad for safekeeping.
According to him, the decision was influenced by concerns that Nigeria could face international sanctions or financial restrictions during that era. By holding funds outside the country through associates, he argued, the government believed it was protecting national assets from possible seizure.
Jibril also questioned why Abacha has remained the primary focus of corruption accusations while other leaders before him were not subjected to similar scrutiny.
“And if he wanted to loot, did others not loot before him? Have they been caught?” he said while raising doubts about the fairness of the accusations directed solely at the late military leader.
He further argued that, in his view, previous leaders who might have engaged in financial misconduct were never held accountable in the same way Abacha has been in public discourse.
“Did they go and put the money in the name of some business men and companies abroad? No,” Jibril added, suggesting that the circumstances surrounding the funds attributed to Abacha have been misunderstood or misrepresented.
The issue of funds linked to Abacha has been widely discussed for decades. Several governments and international institutions have reported recovering large sums of money from accounts connected to the late leader and his associates. These funds have been repatriated to Nigeria over the years through agreements with foreign governments and financial institutions.
Successive Nigerian administrations have described the recovered funds as stolen assets and have pledged to use them for public development projects, including infrastructure and social programs......…