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Malabu oil deal: apologise to Dan Etete, IYC tells FG
By Simon Utebor, Yenagoa
The Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) Worldwide has called on the Federal Government to tender an unreserved apology to Chief Dan Etete following the judgement of a court in Milan, Italy, that exonerated him from fraud and bribery in the transfer of Oil Mining Lease (OML) 245 from Malabu to Shell and Eni.
Etete, a former Minister of Petroleum Resources, who hails from Bayelsa State, faced trials for over 36 months in the United Kingdom and Italy on allegations that he was involved in corrupt practices during the Malabu oil deal.
But the Milan court dismissed the charges as baseless and ruled that Etete had no case to answer, insisting that the Malabu oil transfer settlement, agreements, negotiations and financial payments were beyond reproach.
READ ALSO: $1.09bn Malabu Oil deal: FG still pursuing cases in Italy, London — Malami
IYC in a statement on Tuesday by its spokesperson, Mr Ebilade Ekerefe, described the judgement as a vindication of Etete, Bayelsa and the entire Ijaw nation.
Ekerefe asked the Federal Government to immediately return all seized assets belonging to Etete and restore all his privileges in the country.
He accused the Federal Government of always looking for any slightest infraction to hound and drag prominent Ijaw personalities, who came in contact with opportunities at the federal level while ignoring and shielding northerners allegedly involved in mega corruption deals.
