By Chesa Chesa
The Presidency has clarified that the ongoing Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) litigation involving records relating to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu before a United States federal court is a civil records-disclosure dispute and not a criminal case against the Nigerian leader.
In a statement on Thursday, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, said President Tinubu had neither been charged nor found guilty of any criminal wrongdoing in the case before the United States District Court for the District of Columbia.
The Presidency said the case, designated Civil Action No. 23-1816, was initiated in 2023 by Aaron Greenspan following FOIA requests submitted in 2022 to several US government agencies for records relating to Tinubu.
According to the statement, the agencies either withheld some records or declined to confirm or deny their existence, leading Greenspan to institute the suit.
The court subsequently allowed President Tinubu to participate in the proceedings as an intervenor.
The Presidency explained that US agencies invoked what is known as the “Glomar defence,” a legal position that allows government agencies to neither confirm nor deny the existence of certain investigative records.
Following the defence, the court granted summary judgment in favour of the CIA, Executive Office for United States Attorneys, Department of State, Department of the Treasury and Internal Revenue Service, removing them from the proceedings.
The statement said issues involving the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) remained under consideration.
In compliance with court orders, the FBI and DEA subsequently released 399 pages of records, with portions redacted pursuant to exemptions under US law.
The plaintiff challenged the redactions, while the FBI and DEA, through the US Department of Justice, opposed the demand for unredacted disclosure.
The Presidency listed the grounds for the redactions to include protection of grand jury proceedings and certain court-order information under FOIA Exemption 3; attorney-client and attorney-work-product privileges under Exemption 5; protection of law-enforcement information; personal privacy under Exemptions 6 and 7(C); and protection of confidential sources and investigative techniques under Exemptions 7(D) and 7(E).
It added that President Tinubu, on the advice of his lawyers, had also asserted his rights under FOIA Exemption 7(C), which protects personal privacy interests.
The Presidency noted that the plaintiff has until September 11, 2026, to file opposition and replies to the processes filed by the defendants and the President’s legal team, while the FBI, DEA and Tinubu have until September 18 to respond.
It stressed that 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.
The Presidency also dismissed recent claims by Karl von Batten concerning the case, stating that neither he nor his alleged client, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, is a party to the proceedings.
It 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 of the parties.
“The United States District Court will decide that issue based on the filings and applicable US law, not political commentary,” the Presidency said.
It urged the media and the public to distinguish between verified court proceedings and what it described as partisan speculation surrounding the case.
