Tinubu Not Facing Criminal Case in US, Presidency Clarifies FOIA Litigation

‎The Presidency has clarified that the ongoing Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) case involving records relating to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu before a United States federal court is a civil records-disclosure dispute and does not constitute a criminal case against the Nigerian president.

‎In a statement issued on Thursday by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, the Presidency said recent reports and commentary had created misleading impressions about the nature of the proceedings.

‎According to Onanuga, the case, filed before the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, concerns requests for access to government records under the US Freedom of Information Act.

‎The Presidency traced the matter to 2022, when Aaron Greenspan submitted FOIA requests to several US government agencies seeking records relating to President Tinubu. After some agencies withheld records or declined to confirm or deny their existence, Greenspan commenced Civil Action No. 23-1816 in 2023.

‎The court subsequently allowed Tinubu to participate in the proceedings as an intervenor.

‎The Presidency said the US government agencies invoked what is known as the “Glomar defence”, a legal position under which an agency may refuse to confirm or deny whether particular records or an investigation exist.

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‎Following the invocation of the defence, the court granted summary judgment in favour of the CIA, the Executive Office for United States Attorneys, the US Department of State, the Department of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service, removing them from the proceedings.

‎The remaining aspects of the litigation involve the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Drug Enforcement Administration.

‎The FBI and DEA subsequently produced 399 pages of records, although portions of the documents were redacted pursuant to exemptions contained in US law.

‎Greenspan challenged the redactions and sought the release of additional portions of the documents.

‎However, according to the Presidency, the FBI and DEA, through the US Department of Justice, maintained that some of the information could not lawfully be disclosed.

‎The agencies cited exemptions covering grand jury proceedings, certain court-authorised surveillance information, attorney-client and attorney-work-product privileges, law-enforcement records, personal privacy, confidential sources and investigative techniques.

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‎The Presidency added that Tinubu, on the advice of his lawyers, had also asserted his rights under FOIA Exemption 7(C), which protects personal privacy interests in certain law-enforcement records.

‎Onanuga stressed that the disclosure or withholding of records under the FOIA does not, in itself, establish criminal liability.

‎“The litigation is a civil records-disclosure dispute under FOIA. It does not constitute a criminal charge, trial, or judicial finding against President Tinubu,” the statement said.

‎The Presidency also noted that the next stage of the proceedings is expected to unfold in September.

‎It said the plaintiff has until September 11, 2026, to file opposition to the processes submitted by the defendants and the intervenor, while the FBI, DEA and the intervenor have until September 18 to respond.

‎Onanuga further rejected what he described as attempts by political actors and commentators to portray the case as a criminal proceeding against the president.

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‎He said the outcome of the litigation would be determined by Judge Beryl A. Howell of the US District Court for the District of Columbia based on the evidence, applicable law and arguments presented by the parties.

‎The Presidency therefore urged the Nigerian media and the public to distinguish between verified court proceedings and political commentary, stressing that the outstanding issue before the court is whether the redactions made by the FBI and DEA comply with US law.

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