Nigeria will not be a soft target for predatory litigation, arbitration -Fagbemi
The Attorney-General of the Federation, Mr Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, has said that Nigeria will not be a soft target for predatory litigation and arbitration.
Fagbemi made this known In a statement in Abuja on Tuesday, while reacting to Nigeria’s victory in the International Arbitration instituted by Sunrise Power and Transmission Company Limited (Sunrise) and its principal, Mr Leno Adesanya.
He noted that the verdict was a complete and resounding vindication of Nigeria’s position that Sunrise’s entire claim should be totally rejected.
Newsmen recall that on September 17, a Tribunal of the International Chamber of Commerce, Paris the landmark victory for Nigeria against Sunrise.
The arbitration was about the 3,050 megawatt Mambilla Hydroelectric Power Project (Mambilla Project), one of the largest and most strategically important infrastructure projects in the history of the Nigerian State.
In the arbitration, Sunrise demanded $400 million (comprising a settlement sum and a default sum of $200 million each) and interest at ten per cent per annum compounded daily in addition to its pending claim of over $2.7 billion in a separate, parallel arbitration.
Fagbemi noted that for over two decades, the progress of the vital project has been held hostage by Sunrise’s relentless litigation and arbitration against Nigeria.
“It began with the claim of an alleged Build-Operate-Transfer contract in 2003, followed by court proceedings in 2007, and continuing through further arbitrations.
“The financing of the Mambilla Project by the China Export-Import Bank was expressly conditioned on the resolution of these disputes. As a result, the Project has been unable to achieve financial close, depriving Nigeria and its people of the enormous economic benefits of 3,050 megawatts of clean, renewable hydroelectric power.
“The cost of this delay measured in lost power generation, foregone industrial output, and continued energy poverty is incalculable,” he added.
He said that the tribunal found that the Settlement Agreement and the Addendum thereto, were not binding on Nigeria, as the former Nigerian Ministers who signed them lacked the requisite authority to commit and bind the Federal Government without presidential approval.
“In addition, the settlement agreement was found to be a product of corruption and a violation of Nigerian public policy which made it unenforceable.
“The tribunal also found that Adesanya had engaged in a decades long campaign of bribery and corruption often involving very large payments to several senior Nigerian government officials connected to the Mambilla Project.
“The corrupt scheme, orchestrated by Adesanya extended to the settlement agreements with the tribunal specifically finding that a corrupt deal was in fact reached between Adesanya and the erstwhile senior Nigerian officials who signed the settlement agreement which formed the basis of the present arbitration against Nigeria.”
He said the tribunal noted that Adesanya’s pattern of corrupt dealings extended back to the very origins of the Mambilla dispute.
“This pattern forms what the tribunal described as an established modus operandi of engaging with influential Nigerian government officials through financial incentives.
“Consequently, Sunrise and Adesanya were ordered to bear the overwhelming majority of costs of 75 per cent of Nigeria’s legal fees and expenses, plus interest at 10 per cent per annum compounded annually.
“The tribunal expressed the hope that this would deter Adesanya and his companies from bringing further frivolous legal proceedings against Nigeria.”
He acknowledged the leadership efforts of President Bola Tinubu who has consistently maintained the position that under no guise should Nigeria succumb to fraudulently contrived contractual agreements and any adverse claims arising therefrom.
“I also wish to express my immense appreciation to the president for ensuring the provision of necessary financial and logistic support for the effective defence of this matter.
“We shall continue to provide sound legal advice and effective representation on behalf of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, ensuring that justice is served and the integrity of our nation upheld”.