A fresh allegation has emerged in the long-running dispute over the release of United States records linked to allegations involving President Bola Tinubu.
The claim came from Von Batten-Montague-York, a US-based policy advisory and lobbying firm. The firm accused Tinubu of spending millions of dollars to prevent the records from becoming public.
According to Daily Post, the firm made the allegation in a post on X on Tuesday. It questioned Tinubu’s position that he was not trying to stop the release of the documents.
The firm argued that actions taken by Tinubu’s legal team contradict that position. It claimed the president had petitioned the court and communicated with US agencies over the records.
The dispute centres on a Freedom of Information Act case involving records held by the US Department of Justice, FBI and Drug Enforcement Administration.
The case concerns historical US investigations and a 1993 civil forfeiture proceeding involving about $460,000 connected to Tinubu. Tinubu has denied wrongdoing and has not been criminally convicted of drug trafficking in the United States.
The lobbying firm has continued to campaign for the release of the records. It has also repeatedly criticised efforts to delay their disclosure.
Meanwhile, the legal battle has entered another stage. US District Judge Beryl Howell recently allowed the FBI to submit sensitive material privately for the court’s review.
The judge also gave the FBI, DEA, DOJ and Tinubu’s legal team until August 28 to file their final positions on the release of the records.
The latest allegation therefore comes as the court weighs arguments over whether the records should be made public.
However, the claims by Von Batten-Montague-York remain allegations from a lobbying firm and should not be treated as established facts.
Tinubu has consistently denied the drug-trafficking allegations, while his legal position has maintained that the 1993 forfeiture was a civil proceeding involving the money rather than a criminal conviction against him.
Elom Fortunate Chiemerie is junior staff at modern crux that covers news on international politics, sports news and entertainment News
