Tinubu within his rights to oppose release of FBI, DEA records - Obono-Obla - Businessday NG

…Ex-Presidential Aide Says U.S. records request must not become a political weapon in Nigeria

Okoi Obono-Obla, Former presidential aide and lawyer, has backed President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s decision to oppose the release of Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) records relating to investigations dating back to the early 1990s.

In an exclusive interview with BusinessDay, Obono-Obla described the president’s position as legally justified and warned against turning a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) proceeding in the United States into a political weapon in Nigeria.

“I therefore submit that President Tinubu’s request is in order,” Obono-Obla told BusinessDay, arguing that the proceedings should not be transformed into a means of re-litigating an issue that has become widely known and was considered by Nigeria’s Presidential Election Petition Court in 2023.

The latest controversy stems from a FOIA lawsuit filed in the United States by transparency activist Aaron Greenspan, who is seeking records from American government agencies concerning historical investigations involving Tinubu.