NIAMEY — Former Niger prime minister Hama Amadou on Friday rejected allegations of graft, saying President Mamadou Tandja's only aim was to have him thrown into prison.
"His primary objective is to arrest me and throw me in prison for some reason or other," he told Radio France International (RFI).
Justice authorities in Niger on Thursday issued an international arrest warrant against the ailing former prime minister.
Government spokesman Ben Omar said the warrant was issued "because an inquiry has revealed that he holds 15,000 shares in the West African bank, Ecobank."
According to the private Niamey radio station Radio Anfani, Amadou will be charged with "illegal enrichment and money laundering."
"Now they are showing me a file on so-called misappropriation of public funds and money-laundering. Do you think someone is capable of stealing 16 billion CFA francs (24.4 million euros, 34.6 million dollars) from the budget of Niger? If I had stolen 16 billion then why haven't the ministers who helped me steal it been named in the file?" Amadou said on RFI.
Previously considered a likely presidential successor, Amadou, 59, was freed in April after nearly a year in jail on suspected charges of theft of state funds.
He was freed conditionally to allow him to seek medical treatment abroad after his health took a turn for the worse.
Amadou, whose whereabouts were not clear, became prime minister of this impoverished west African country in 2000, but was removed from office in May 2007 as a result of a parliamentary censure.
After that he accused President Tandja of trying to bar him from a presidential election due in December.
Although constitutionally barred from running for office, having already served two terms as president, Tandja will on Tuesday organise a referendum as part of a bid to stay in power for three more years.
Copyright © 2010 AFP. All rights reserved. More »
