The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) have refused a request to disclose information about President Bola Tinubu, citing his “privacy rights” as a factor. In response to a motion by Aaron Greenspan, who sought reconsideration of a previous ruling, the law enforcement agencies argued that the plaintiff was essentially attempting to reargue a case that the court had already ruled on. Consequently, the agencies have asked the court to reject the plaintiff’s motion for reconsideration.
According to their response, the court correctly classified the motion as a request for a temporary restraining order and found that the plaintiff failed to demonstrate that he would succeed on the merits regarding Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) exemptions. The agencies also argued that granting the motion would not serve the public interest, as President Tinubu’s privacy rights need to be taken into account.
This development follows a prior rejection of an emergency request by Greenspan to release confidential information about President Tinubu by the US court for the District of Columbia. The district judge, Beryl Howell, ruled that Greenspan did not meet the necessary conditions to grant such a request.
“The Court properly characterized that motion as a motion for a temporary restraining order and determined that plaintiff did not satisfy his burden of showing that he would succeed on the merits as to FOIA exemptions and irreparable injury is likely, and the balance of equities favor him or granting the motion would further the public interest because Tinubu has privacy interests that should be considered,” the agencies said in their response to Greenspan’s motion.
The development comes after the US court for the district of Columbia rejected an emergency request by Greenspan on the release of the confidential information about Tinubu.
Greenspan, in the application had sought to compel the FBI, CIA, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and Internal Revenue Service (IRS), to hasten the release of Tinubu’s dossier.
Declining the request, Beryl Howell, the district judge, had said Greenspan did not meet the preconditions for granting a request of that nature.
The judge said the request “may be of a highly sensitive and private nature” and that “the subject of those documents, Bola A. Tinubu, has had no opportunity to protect his privacy interests in any such records”.
Greenspan had accused the law enforcement agencies of violating the freedom of information act by not releasing the confidential information within the stipulated time.