Senate president named in explosive Paradise Papers release that show his offshore accounts

godfred akoto

November 6, 2017 10:58 AM

Journalists released the Paradise Papers on Sunday

The President of Nigeria's Senate,Bukola Saraki has been named in the release of the Paradise Papers, a document which shows his ownership of several offshore companies.

The Paradise Papers document leak revealed more than 13.4 million internal documents on Sunday showing how major world players take advantage of offshore tax havens.

The leaked documents were obtained by the German newspaper Suddeutsche Zeitung and were shared with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), which also spearheaded the release of the Panama Papers in last year.

The massive trove of material reveals the inner workings of global companies, including offshore law-firm Appleby and Singapore-based Asiaciti Trust, which administer offshore accounts for wealthy investors. There are also details from 19 corporate entities maintained by governments in tax-haven countries.

Bukola Saraki is the president of Nigeria’s Senate, which makes him the third most powerful politician in Nigeria.

IN THE DATA

Saraki was director and a shareholder of Tenia Ltd., a company established in the Cayman Islands in April 2001. Appleby’s records describe Tenia Ltd. as a “holding company.” In August 2013, Appleby had recorded Saraki’s company as “low” risk and listed the company’s address as 30 Saka Tinubu Street on Victoria Island in Lagos, which his lawyers said was rented by him.

In 2016, Nigerian officials obtained a search warrant on the property, as part of an investigation examining alleged false declaration of assets, according to local media. In June 2017, a tribunal in Nigeria dismissed charges against him of having falsely declared assets, but Nigeria’s federal government vowed to appeal. Tenia Ltd was listed as active as of 2015.

RESPONSE

“There is nothing unlawful in the ownership of offshore companies,” Saraki’s lawyers told ICIJ, adding that Tenia Ltd. was incorporated two years before Saraki was elected as governor. Tenia Ltd. has never held assets nor conducted business and Saraki rented the property given as Tenia Ltd.’s address in Lagos, Nigeria, his lawyers told ICIJ.

They also said that he believes the case against him is politically motivated and he is confident that the appeal will be dismissed.

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