Transparency International, the global anti-corruption movement, has deplored the action taken by the government of Nigeria to drop corruption charges against Mohammed Abacha, the son of late General Sani Abacha.
TI called for the immediate reinstatement of the charges.
The government had accused Mohammed Abacha of receiving stolen property worth millions of dollars.
The money is believed to have been stolen by his father when he was the Head of State.
The Nigerian government had filed a nine-count charge against Mohammed.
“Allowing the theft of public funds to go unpunished sends the wrong message that those with powerful connections can act with impunity. The case should have been fully prosecuted and the government has not given adequate reasons for dropping the charges,” said Chantal Uwimana, the Regional Director for Sub-Saharan Africa at Transparency International.
General Abacha was investigated for corruption and human rights violations.
Recently, the United States Government froze $458 million in assets it claimed General Abacha and his co-conspirators stole from Nigeria.
In separate legal proceedings, Liechtenstein agreed on June 18 to return $224 million held by companies linked to General Abacha.
Corruption is widespread in Nigeria and despite claims by the government to make tackling corruption a priority, too few people have been held to account for a series of high profile scandals.
At the same time, about half of Nigerians live in poverty.
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