Tinubu Can’t Claim Privacy Over Alleged Heroin Records While Presidency Publicly Discusses Them, Stating “Obvious Untruths” — U.S. Lobbying Firm

*Moves to Join Nigerian President’s FBI Records Case

*Says Tinubu’s approach may work in Nigeria but not in America

By KEMI KASUMU

“Nigerian President #Tinubu cannot ask a federal court to protect his alleged #heroin trafficking records on privacy grounds while simultaneously using the power of the #Nigerian Presidency to ‘publicly’ discuss those same records and state ‘obvious untruths’ about what the official @FBI, @DEAHQ, and court records actually say. You cannot claim privacy before the Court and then blatantly misrepresent the records to the public. That might work in Nigeria; it does not work in the United States.”

A United States-based lobbying firm, Von Batten-Montague-York, has announced plans to seek permission from the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to intervene in the ongoing legal dispute over records relating to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

The firm said it is preparing to seek leave to file an amicus curiae brief — a submission by a non-party intended to assist the court — specifically on Tinubu’s asserted privacy interests in the records.

In a statement, the firm said it had notified plaintiff Aaron Greenspan, the U.S. Department of Justice, and Tinubu’s legal counsel of its intention, pursuant to D.D.C. Local Civil Rule 7(o)(2).

According to the firm, it is awaiting responses from the parties before formally filing its application.

Von Batten-Montague-York said its proposed argument would focus on the effect of an official statement issued by the Nigerian Presidency concerning the disputed records.

The firm maintained that the statement by the Nigerian State House would not, by itself, automatically eliminate Tinubu’s privacy protections. However, it argued that by voluntarily placing the records, the litigation, and the president’s privacy claims into an international public debate, the Presidency had potentially weakened the weight of the privacy interest being asserted under Exemption 7(C) of the U.S. Freedom of Information Act.

The firm further alleged that the Nigerian Presidency had publicly discussed the records while Tinubu was simultaneously asking a U.S. federal court to keep them protected on privacy grounds.

Von Batten-Montague-York said it believes a president cannot invoke privacy protections before a U.S. court while his government publicly comments on the same records and allegedly disputes their contents.

The firm specifically referenced records associated with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), as well as documents filed in the federal court proceedings.

The lobbying firm also accused the Nigerian Presidency of making what it described as “obvious untruths” about what the FBI, DEA, and court records contain.

“You cannot claim privacy before the Court and then blatantly misrepresent the records to the public,” the firm argued, adding that such an approach might be tolerated in Nigeria but would not succeed in the United States.

The proposed filing comes amid the continuing legal battle over the disclosure of U.S. government records concerning Tinubu and an earlier U.S. investigation involving allegations of drug trafficking and money laundering. The precise contents and legal significance of records submitted to the court remain subject to the judicial proceedings.

In its words, the U.S. firm said:

“There is a saying: When you find yourself in a hole, stop digging. The Nigerian Presidency’s (@officialABAT) attempt to mislead the world has opened the door for us to step in officially. We are preparing to seek leave from the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia (@uscourts) to file an amicus curiae brief concerning President Bola #Tinubu’s asserted privacy interests. Pursuant to D.D.C. Local Civil Rule 7(o)(2), today we notified Plaintiff Aaron Greenspan, @TheJusticeDept, and President #Tinubu’s counsel. We are awaiting their responses before filing.

“Our argument is straightforward: the #Nigerian Statehouse Statement blunder does not automatically eliminate President #Tinubu’s privacy protections, but when his own Presidency voluntarily places the records, litigation, and privacy claim into the international public debate through an official government statement, we believe it destroys the weight of his asserted privacy interest under Exemption 7(C).

“Nigerian President #Tinubu cannot ask a federal court to protect his alleged #heroin trafficking records on privacy grounds while simultaneously using the power of the #Nigerian Presidency to ‘publicly’ discuss those same records and state ‘obvious untruths’ about what the official @FBI, @DEAHQ, and court records actually say. You cannot claim privacy before the Court and then blatantly misrepresent the records to the public. That might work in Nigeria; it does not work in the United States.”