Efforts by the Federal Government to repatriate stolen funds stashed overseas may not yield intended results anytime soon, as Nigeria has yet to join the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) on Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing.

The Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami (SAN), has just submitted an application for membership of FATF.

The process leading to membership of FATF takes 10 years.

This and others may have accounted for why Nigeria was “talked down” and humiliated two weeks ago, at an Anti-Corruption Summit in London, attended by President Muhammadu Buhari and other world leaders.

The disclosures were made yesterday in Abuja by the Chairman, Senate Committee on Anti-Corruption and Financial Crimes, Chukwuka Utazi. The lawmaker, who said he accompanied Buhari to the London Summit two weeks ago, said the country must step up action, if meaningful results will be achieved.

Utazi, who spoke at the presentation of a report on National Risk Assessment (NRA) on Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing, lamented the absence of Malami, the Minister of Interior, Lt.-Gen. Abdulrahman Dambazzau (rtd), as well as the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun.

Though, the ministers were represented, Utazi believes the presentation of NRA report was such an important event that would have necessitated the physical presence of the ministers.

Consequently, the lawmaker, who represents Enugu North Senatorial District, said he would seek a “special” appointment with the president, to underscore the urgency in facilitating the process for the country’s membership of TATF. “I was with Mr. President in London at the anti-corruption summit. We were talked down.

This country was talked down and we felt humiliated. Starting from a day before the summit, I listened to the Director- General of Transparency International in the night preceding the event in my hotel room. I listened to the BBC live interview, I felt hollow,” he said. He continued: “I attended the FATF meeting last time in February in Paris at the OOCD head office. I was there with Dr. ‘Buno (Nduka) and the DG who led us to the secretariat of FATF. I went to that meeting with my colleagues in the House of Representatives.

“When I came into that meeting, I came with an air of importance. I walked as the person leading the delegation from Nigeria to make a case that Nigeria should just be given opportunity immediately, the next day to become a member of FATF.

But by the time we had a meeting, a submeeting with the Assis tant Secretary, who came to brief us and talk to us about our membership, they brought our file and showed us the file of the former application done by former Attorney-General and Finance Minister and that application was lying in the file for several years. “They brought a fresh one showing us the present application done by the Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, Malami.

By the time we finished our activity, I felt I never attended that meeting. We were humbled, really humbled.” On his part, former Director-General of GIABA, Prof. Abdullahi Shehu, who also lamented the absence of the ministers, observed that the proceeds of corruption were now laundered internally. The event was declared open by Prof. O. Bolaji, the representative of Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo.