The Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Abubakar Malami, Friday expressed appreciation to the steering committee of the Voluntary Principles Initiative for prioritising and recommending Nigeria as one of the countries to be considered for free subscription at the plenary in March 2018 at Washington D.C, United States.

He also announced that Nigeria would soon take a decision on her observer status.

“In due course, the nation will take a decision to evaluate her observer status,” Malami said during the visit of the VPI delegation to the Ministry of Justice.

Represented by the Director, Legal Drafting, Mamman Hamzat Takir, Malami assured the delegation of the commitment of the present administration of President Muhammadu Buhari to the enthronement of the rule of law and the delivery of fair and equitable justice to all Nigerians, foreigners and investors without fear or favour as they carry on business in a safe condition.

“Considering the need for the communal cooperation and coordination of security and human rights activities in the extractive sector, it has become increasingly necessary to come together to appraise the efforts at both the government, corporate and non-governmental organisations levels to achieve a safe, friendly, secured, business and human rights compliant environment. This visit therefore, would give us the opportunity to learn from each other, share ideas and identify roadmaps that would facilitate a justice system that meets the hopes and aspirations of our citizens particularly in the extractive zones,” the AGF said.

He assured that the Justice Ministry would stick to its role of checking and balancing the supremacy of the laws of the land and sovereignty of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

“As you are aware, the Federal Ministry of Justice is the legal institution of Government to create the necessary synergy between the Federal Government, corporate bodies and non-governmental organisations as pillars of the Voluntary Principles Initiative,” he said.

Earlier, the current chair of the Voluntary Principles Initiative, Mr. Ronald Roosdorp, informed top officials of the ministry of the benefits that would accrue to Nigeria as a signatory to the VPI.

“It is not an instrument or a binding law. It is to reduce security risk in the attractive industry through dialogue and cooperation. It is also to improve things on ground and assist governments, companies and communities in achieving their goals,” he said.