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ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 171604Z SEP 08
FM AMEMBASSY ABUJA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 3984
INFO RUEHZK/ECOWAS COLLECTIVE
RUEHYD/AMEMBASSY YAOUNDE 0376
RUEHOS/AMCONSUL LAGOS 9952
RUEAHQA/AFRICA CENTER FOR STRATEGIC STUDIES WASHDC
RHMFISS/HQ USAFRICOM STUTTGART GE
RHEBAAA/DEPT OF ENERGY WASHDC
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHINGTON DC
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC
RUEKDIA/DIA WASHDC
RHMFISS/HQ USEUCOM VAIHINGEN GE
RUZEJAA/JAC MOLESWORTH RAF MOLESWORTH UK

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 
 
ABUJA 00001870  002 OF 003 
 
 
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 
 
ABUJA 00001870  003 OF 003 
 
 
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