A PREMIUM TIMES investigation into a secret offshore deal involving the family of former National Security Adviser Sambo Dasuki and businessman Leno Adesanya helped Nigeria win the Mambilla power project case.
This investigation was a key part of the evidence presented by Nigeria and its lawyers during arbitration at the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) in Paris, France.
The investigation, published on 13 October 2021 as part of the Pandora Papers project, uncovered details of an offshore company, Hydropower Investments Limited. This company was set up for three members of the Dasuki family and was designed to hold shares in businesses linked to Mr Adesanya, including Sunrise Power & Transmission Company Limited, the company at the center of the Mambilla dispute.
The ICC tribunal examined the arrangement as part of Nigeria’s claims of corruption against Mr Adesanya and his connections with the Dasuki family.
What PREMIUM TIMES Found
The PREMIUM TIMES investigation revealed that Hydropower Investments was registered in the British Virgin Islands on 14 November 2013 through an offshore secrecy provider, Trident Trust Company Limited. Mr Adesanya and Abubakar Atiku Dasuki were named as directors.
The beneficial shareholders were Abubakar Atiku Dasuki, Hassan Sultan Dasuki, and Asmau Iman Dasuki, all children of former NSA Dasuki.
The company was set up to hold shares in Mr Adesanya’s businesses, including 10 million shares in Sunrise Power and 1.5 million shares in Sino Africa. There was no evidence that the Dasuki children paid for these shares. When Trident Trust asked how the shareholders would fund the shares, Mr Adesanya called the funding “carried interest through a loan to be arranged by the sponsor (Leno Adesanya) of the project.”
The investigation also showed that Mr Adesanya was the main contact for Hydropower Investments and used his Lagos home as the company’s address. Mr Adesanya, through a representative, said he did not receive any favors from Mr Dasuki and that he only helped the former NSA’s children start a business. Mr Dasuki, through a representative, denied asking Mr Adesanya to create the company for his children.
$1.74 Million Payment Under Review
The offshore deal was not the only transaction the ICC tribunal looked at. The tribunal also reviewed a $1.74 million payment made by Mr Adesanya to Abubakar Dasuki, one of Sambo Dasuki’s sons, in December 2014.
The tribunal rejected Mr Adesanya’s claim that this payment was a loan. They found inconsistencies between his explanation and other evidence. “The Tribunal is not convinced by Mr Adesanya’s explanation that the USD 1.74 million constitutes a loan to Mr Abubakar Dasuki because of the inconsistencies between his account and other elements of the evidential record,” it said.
The tribunal questioned why such a significant transaction lacked a formal loan agreement. “The Tribunal would have expected a company like Sunrise, represented by a seasoned businessman like Mr Adesanya, to have recorded the transaction in a written loan agreement,” it said.
The tribunal also noted that the recipient was the son of Sambo Dasuki, who served as Nigeria’s National Security Adviser from June 2012 to July 2015. “The Tribunal does not accept that argument as it is generally accepted that payments to direct family members of public officials can constitute bribes,” it said.
Despite this, the tribunal did not link the $1.74 million payment to the Mambilla agreement. They said the dealings raised serious concerns that were not cleared by other evidence.
PREMIUM TIMES found that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) started investigating the financial dealings between Mr Adesanya and the Dasukis after this newspaper reported on their business ties. A close look at Mr Adesanya’s banking transactions later provided important evidence: the large cash transfer to Mr Dasuki’s son.
Tribunal Acknowledges PREMIUM TIMES Report
The link between the 2021 investigation and the arbitration became clear when the tribunal examined Nigeria’s claim about the alleged transfer of a stake in Sunrise Power to the Dasuki family via Hydropower Investments.
The tribunal said Nigeria’s claim was based on documents released through PREMIUM TIMES reporting of the Pandora Papers leak. “Moving to the alleged transfer of a stake in Sunrise to the family of Mr Sambo Dasuki through Hydropower Investment Ltd, the Tribunal considers as follows. Nigeria bases its allegation in this respect on documents that came into the public domain following the leak of the so-called Pandora Papers,” the tribunal stated.
The tribunal’s comments included a footnote that identified the PREMIUM TIMES investigation as the source of the evidence provided. “Exh. R-45, Premium Times article entitled ‘Pandora Papers: Inside the secret deal between Sambo Dasuki’s family and a billionaire govt. contractor’, dated 13 October 2021,” the ICC award noted.
The 2021 investigation showed that Hydropower Investments was set up in 2013 and intended to hold 10 million Sunrise shares for the Dasuki family members.
PREMIUM TIMES was the only Nigerian newspaper involved in that significant global investigation led by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ).
PREMIUM TIMES Contacted for More Evidence
As part of gathering evidence for the arbitration in the Mambilla dispute, lawyers in Nigeria reached out to PREMIUM TIMES for more information and key documents related to the Pandora Papers story involving Mr Adesanya and the Dasukis.
But this newspaper directed the lawyers to the original story and related documents on its website. The lawyers and justice ministry officials downloaded this information to form the basis of the argument against Mr Adesanya’s alleged manipulation of Nigerian officials.
Reacting to the ruling, PREMIUM TIMES’ Managing Editor, Idris Akinbajo, said the newspaper is happy and proud to have helped Nigeria succeed in the arbitration. “This is another great impact of the global Pandora Papers project in which PREMIUM TIMES was a key participant. We thank the ICIJ and other partners for that important investigation. We are glad that our country, Nigeria, has benefited greatly from the project. We will keep doing our best to add value to our country, subregion, and humanity.”
What Nigeria Could Have Lost
If Nigeria had lost the Mambilla project arbitration at the ICC in Paris, the country could have faced over $3 billion in potential losses.
This financial risk includes two main claims made by Sunrise Power and Transmission Company Limited. The first is a compensation claim of $2.35 billion to $2.7 billion, plus interest, for an alleged breach of contract related to the Mambilla Hydroelectric Power Project.
There is also a settlement claim of $200 million and a $200 million default penalty, which could rise to $680 million with interest. This was filed by Sunrise, claiming Nigeria breached a 2020 settlement agreement.
Beyond avoiding this huge financial liability, Nigeria also saved on legal costs. Instead of paying damages, the ICC panel ordered Sunrise Power and Mr Adesanya to cover the legal costs and pay Nigeria about $11.82 million, which is around 75% of Nigeria’s legal fees and arbitration expenses.
“We are glad that our newspaper played an important role in saving Nigeria from this huge, potentially damaging liabilities,” Mr Akinbajo added.
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