Tinubu Takes Fight to US Court Over Release of Drug Records
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has asked a United States court to block the release of government records connected to past allegations of drug trafficking involving him.
The request was made in response to a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit filed by American transparency activist Aaron Greenspan, who is seeking access to records held by US law enforcement agencies.
Greenspan is asking for the FBI’s complete file on Tinubu, including Form 302 interview records covering investigations conducted between 1992 and 1993.
His lawsuit also seeks records reportedly linked to a 1993 civil forfeiture proceeding in the United States involving about $460,000 allegedly connected to Tinubu.
Tinubu has denied wrongdoing in connection with the allegations.
In a 16-page court filing dated August 28, Tinubu’s lawyers argued that releasing the records would infringe on the president’s privacy rights.
The legal team said the fact that limited information from the forfeiture proceedings had previously become public did not remove the privacy protections covering the broader investigative files.
“Regardless of the prior disclosure in the forfeiture proceeding, Intervenor retains a privacy interest in potential disclosure of the investigative files sought by Plaintiff,” the lawyers argued.
Tinubu’s representatives further maintained that Greenspan’s filings showed a particular interest in obtaining government documents bearing the president’s name.
They argued that concerns raised by Greenspan over the FBI’s search efforts, the DEA’s Vaughn Index, redactions and other aspects of the agencies’ responses should not be used to obtain records protected under privacy exemptions.
“Plaintiff’s filings, overwhelmingly, demonstrate that his singular focus is obtaining documents with Intervenor’s ‘name on them,’” the filing stated.
The lawyers also argued that the Freedom of Information Act should not be used to obtain otherwise protected information about an individual simply because that person’s name appears in government records.
“If this Court finds that Plaintiff cannot use FOIA to mine information in government files about a private individual, he should not be able to access documents with Intervenor’s ‘name on them,’” they said.
Tinubu’s legal team asked the court to reject Greenspan’s motion for summary judgment and allow the FBI and Drug Enforcement Administration to retain their existing redactions and withholdings.
The case centres on Greenspan’s efforts to obtain historical US government records relating to investigations and proceedings involving Tinubu, while the president’s lawyers continue to challenge their disclosure.
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