By Newspot Nigeria News Desk
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has filed a legal motion in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, seeking to prevent the full public release of certain records held by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).
In a filing dated September 4, 2025, President Tinubu’s U.S.-based lawyer, Oluwole O. Afolabi, argued that the documents should remain protected under the U.S. Privacy Act and FOIA Exemption 7(C), which safeguards information compiled for law enforcement purposes if disclosure could constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy.
This development comes nearly five months after Judge Beryl A. Howell ruled, on April 8, 2025, that both agencies could not rely on blanket privacy claims to withhold files and must release non-exempt materials. The ruling followed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request filed in Washington, D.C.
Since then, the DEA has processed and released a limited set of pages, many with redactions, while the FBI indicated that it plans to begin interim productions of records in December 2025. The filings show that both agencies are continuing to follow court-supervised procedures in handling the requests.
President Tinubu’s motion seeks to ensure that privacy protections remain a key factor in the court’s review before any further disclosures. The request has set up another round of legal consideration, with the judge expected to decide on whether the intervention will be admitted and how the process of releasing records will proceed.
The case is being closely monitored in both Nigeria and the United States, given its implications for transparency and privacy in Freedom of Information Act proceedings. For now, the April 2025 court order remains in force while the September motion filed on behalf of President Tinubu awaits a ruling.
Newspot Nigeria will continue to provide updates as this important case develops.
Disclaimer: This report is based on publicly available U.S. court filings and related press coverage. The case is ongoing, and further judicial rulings may provide additional context or clarification.
