The United States has once again warned that corrupt Nigerian government officials risk visa restrictions. In a statement posted on its official X handle yesterday, the US Mission in Nigeria said fighting corruption has no borders and that accountability extends to highprofile individuals.

“Fighting corruption knows no borders or limits on accountability. Even when high-profile individuals engage in corruption, they can be barred from receiving US Visas,” the Mission said. The US has repeatedly stressed its commitment to supporting Nigeria’s anticorruption drive.

The US had in the past imposed visa restrictions on politicians accused of undermining democratic processes and engaging in electoral malpractices.

The latest warning comes at a time when transparency advocates have raised concerns over alleged mismanagement of public funds and abuse of office across different levels of government in Nigeria.

Washington maintains that denying entry to corrupt officials is part of its broader strategy to promote good governance, accountability, and respect for the rule of law in partner nations. Incidentally, in December 2017 during his first term in office, the President Donald Trump Administration had launched a new sanctions regime targeting human rights abusers and corrupt actors around the world.

Building on the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act passed by Congress a year earlier, Trump signed an Executive Order (Order) declaring a national emergency with respect to serious human rights abuse and corruption around the world and providing for the imposition of sanctions on actors engaged in these malign activities.

“Today, the United States is taking a strong stand against human rights abuse and corruption globally by shutting these bad actors out of the US financial system.

The Treasury is freezing their assets and publicly denouncing the egregious acts they’ve committed, sending a message that there is a steep price to pay for their misdeeds,” said then Secretary of the Treasury Steven T. Mnuchin.

“At the direction of President Trump, the Treasury and our interagency partners will continue to take decisive and impactful actions to hold accountable those who abuse human rights, perpetrate corruption, and undermine American ideals,” he added.