NIGERIA: BILATERAL RELATIONS POST-EFCC DEMARCHE

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 ABUJA 001870

SIPDIS

STATE FOR AF/W, INR/AA
DOE FOR GEORGE PERSON

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/16/2018
TAGS: PGOV PINR PREL EFIN KCROR KCRM MARR MASS NI
SUBJECT: NIGERIA: BILATERAL RELATIONS POST-EFCC DEMARCHE

REF: A. ABUJA 1595

B. STATE 84635

Classified By: Ambassador Robin R. Sanders for reasons 1.4. (b & d).


1. (C) SUMMARY: On September 14 and September 15
respectively, Ambassador met with Foreign Minister Ojo
Maduekwe and newly appointed Secretary to the Government of
the Federation (SGF) Mahmud Yayale Ahmed. Both Maduekwe and
Ahmed expressed their comments and concerns about our
bilateral relations in the aftermath of the USG demarche on
the EFCC on August 11 (reftel A),saying that the GON thought
the USG approach was condescending, insulting, and
counterproductive. Each also added that the USG should give
EFCC Chairwoman Waziri a chance to prove herself. Ambassador
conveyed the need for the EFCC to show real results, and
emphasized the importance of President Yar'Adua meeting with
SecState during UNGA. Both conversations ended with a
renewed recognition of the need for continued dialogue in the
face of challenges to the U.S./Nigeria partnership. END
SUMMARY.

Meeting with Foreign Minister Maduekwe
--------------


2. (C) The Ambassador met with Nigerian Foreign Minister Ojo
Maduekwe on evening of September 14 at his residence. During
their two-hour meeting the FonMin discussed the state of
U.S.-Nigerian relations and provided both his own comments
and what he said was the sentiment inside the Villa on recent
USG demarche on the EFCC. The Ambassador took the
opportunity to note that she and the UK High Commissioner
would seek the opportunity to come in together to discuss the
Niger Delta and a joint paper on the issue. The Ambassador
also left a non-paper with him, after highlighting the key
points. A somber FonMin said that we needed to work together
to try to get the goodwill in our bilateral relationship back
on track after the recent ref A demarche on the EFCC. He
added that what ruffled the feathers in the Presidential
Villa was not so much our policy issue and position, which we
have the right to maintain as a government, but rather the
manner, tone, and unfriendly way in which his government felt
that the demarche was carried out. He said that the
non-paper left behind had been circulated within the
Government and even the President was surprised by the tone
of the demarche. The Ambassador responded that, with the
recent changes and redeployments, the EFCC had turned out to
be a disappointment, and that our concerns were meant to
demonstrate our strong interest in getting the institution
and leadership to do the right things to move on high profile
cases.


3. (C) Maduekwe also said he had high hopes that the U.S. and
Nigeria had reached a more "adult level" in our bilateral
relationship, but the tone and wording of the demarche
"challenged not only Nigeria's dignity," but put Nigeria on
the level of a "banana republic." The FonMin told the
Ambassador he was being frank and honest with her as a
colleague and a friend, but noted that his government was
concerned about the turn of events, and that the "UK had
handled the actions on this far better than the U.S. had,
making the same points and discussing the same high profile
cases." He added that EFCC Chairwoman Waziri had just
returned from London on September 11, where although a strong
concern over the EFCC's progress was expressed, the UK
offered constructive suggestions on the way forward regarding
the same EFCC cases and issues, and "the door was left open
to dialogue to give EFCC Chairwoman Waziri a chance to prove
herself by moving forward on some of the big pending cases."
The FonMin went on to contrast the UK's approach with the
USG's, where Nigeria was faced with threats and the
discontinuation of training. The Ambassador replied that the
EFCC must prove that it can deliver before any door can be
reopened. Maduekwe noted that this was unfortunate as there
is a current sentiment that Nigeria does not want U.S.
training under the current circumstances, and added that
Nigeria had worked very closely with the U.S. recently on key
issues such as Zimbabwe, and despite a lot of private
accolades and thanks, nothing was said publicly by the US to

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recognize Nigeria's efforts. Ambassador responded that we
had recognized Nigeria's partnership with the U.S. on
Zimbabwe, particularly highlighting a SecState press briefing.


4. (C) The Ambassador then noted that the best way to move
forward and to further discussions on this and other
bilateral issues would be to ensure that President Yar'Adua
and SecState meet during the upcoming UNGA, further noting
that that we were still waiting for the GON's response to the
proposed time for a September 27 meeting. Maduekwe said that
the President's plans originally were to return to Nigeria on
September 26, but also, in light of how the GON was feeling
about the EFCC issue, he questioned if this is the right time
for a bilateral between the two. The Ambassador stated that
not meeting would not be productive and emphasized that
certainly this would be the wrong way to go as it was key to
maintain dialogue on this issue not only with him as Foreign
Minister, but certainly with the President, so that as
partners we can ensure that the international reputation of
the EFCC is restored by concluding and prosecuting the
pending high profile cases. She added that we are still
friends and partners and that a high level dialogue at this
time would be fruitful. The FonMin considered this and said
that he would work to get the President to add a day to his
UNGA travel plans so that he can meet with SecState.

Meeting with SGF Ahmed
--------------


5. (C) In a subsequent September 15 meeting with Mahmud
Yayale Ahmed, new SGF and the former Defense Minister, the
Ambassador began the initial courtesy call by congratulating
him on his new appointment, noting that she looked forward to
continuing the same positive working relationship she had
with him at the Ministry of Defense. She also took the
opportunity to present to him the joint U.S.-UK paper on the
Niger Delta, noting that it tracked with what she had
previously given him in July in offering USG support, if
requested, for Niger Delta-related issues. Ahmed was
extremely friendly and also welcomed the continued positive
and open dialogue as enjoyed before. He then said he wanted
to have a private meeting to talk through some the recent
issues, most notably the EFCC. Ahmed said our EFCC demarche
points (ref A) had certainly made the rounds within the GON,
and then went into what he viewed as a bit of background, the
state of play in the government regarding the President's
health, and how we needed to work through some of the GON's
concerns about the tone of our position on the EFCC. To
begin, Ahmed said that his government understood the
international community's concern about the EFCC, their
respect for Ribadu, and their desire for Nigeria to succeed
in its fight against corruption. The SGF added that he
agreed with the USG that the Ribadu issue had been handled
badly in terms of how he was relieved of his job, and
certainly as the former Head of the Civil Service, he
strongly disagreed with any attempt to demote him. That
being said, despite several warnings by Yar'Adua over the
course of many months to tone down his "grandstanding", he
refused to respect President Yar'Adua's wishes and in the end
lost his position because of it. Ahmed added that what the
GON wants now is for the international community in general,
and the United States in particular, to give the EFCC
Chairwoman a chance to prove herself and do her job. The new
SGF said that Nigeria was willing to work with the U.S. on
this issue, but there was a manner to go about doing this
that was not reflected in the tone and "unfriendly" points in
the ref A demarche. "We Nigerians," Ahmed emphasized, "are
very proud and can be very stubborn if we feel that our
dignity and respect has been challenged."


6. (C) In response, the Ambassador underscored that the USG
believed that without such strong terms our seriousness on
this issue would not have been heeded. Ahmed noted he
understood our seriousness, but there was a way in which to
go about working with friends. He also added that we should
not underestimate President Yar'Adua because, despite his
quiet demeanor, he can be quite tough when he believes that
he has been insulted or disrespected. The Ambassador stated
that this was not the USG's intention, but emphasized that we

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did want to see action and closure on the big pending cases
like ex-Delta Governor Ibori. She then asked why the
President would associate himself with someone under
suspicion, such as Ibori, noting that we understand that he
has access to the Villa. In our system, she added, there is
a distance put between anyone under suspicion of breaking any
laws and senior USG officials. Ahmed said that the USG
should not confuse Yar'Adua's commitment to the rule of law
with his granting of access to Ibori. He said that there is
a Nigerian context and a Nigerian reality that anyone in
Yar'Adua's position has to manage. The President has decided
it was better to give Ibori managed access than none at all.
The Ambassador noted that all this created uneasiness for us
and that we would continue to keep our distance from the EFCC
until we saw progress. Ahmed said he thought this was the
wrong approach as the only way to move forward was via
dialogue, and that included giving Mrs. Waziri a chance.
Ambassador and Ahmed ended the meeting by agreeing to
continue their conversation on this issue. Ahmed also noted
that Yar'Adua had asked him to take over a lot of the
day-to-day Executive responsibilities due to his health, and
the new SGF said he would like to come to the U.S. in October
so that he could meet directly with senior USG officials in
his new capacity as SGF. The Ambassador said she would pass
on that message.
SANDERS