Nigeria won't be an easy target for fake lawsuits and arbitration - Fagbemi

The Attorney-General of the Federation, Lateef Fagbemi, said Nigeria will not be an easy target for fake lawsuits and arbitration.

Mr Fagbemi, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, shared this in a statement in Abuja on Tuesday. He was reacting to Nigeria’s recent win in the International Arbitration case brought by Sunrise Power and Transmission Company Limited (Sunrise) and its main person, Leno Adesanya.

He pointed out that the court's decision was a strong confirmation that Nigeria’s stand was right and that Sunrise’s whole claim should be completely dismissed.

The International Chamber of Commerce Tribunal in Paris, France, announced this decision on 17 September. This marked a big win for Nigeria against Sunrise.

The arbitration was about the 3,050 megawatt Mambilla Hydroelectric Power Project (Mambilla Project), which is one of Nigeria’s biggest and most important infrastructure projects.

In the arbitration, Sunrise asked for $400 million, which included a settlement amount and a default amount of $200 million each. They also wanted interest at ten percent per year, calculated daily, along with their ongoing claim of over $2.7 billion in another arbitration.

Mr Fagbemi said that for more than twenty years, Sunrise’s constant lawsuits and arbitration against Nigeria held back the progress of this crucial project.

“It started with a claim about a supposed Build-Operate-Transfer contract in 2003. This continued with court cases in 2007 and more arbitrations after that.

“The funding for the Mambilla Project by the China Export-Import Bank depended on sorting out these disputes. Because of this, the project has not been able to secure funding, stopping Nigeria and its people from enjoying the huge economic benefits of 3,050 megawatts of clean, renewable hydroelectric power.

“The cost of this delay in lost power generation, missed industrial output, and ongoing energy poverty is huge,” he added.

He mentioned that the tribunal found that the settlement agreement and its addendum were not binding on Nigeria. The former Nigerian ministers who signed them did not have the right to commit and bind the federal government without the president's approval.

“Also, the settlement agreement was seen as a result of corruption and against Nigerian public policy, making it impossible to enforce.

“The tribunal also found that Adesanya had been involved in a long-term bribery and corruption scheme, which often included large payments to several senior Nigerian government officials linked to the Mambilla Project.

“The corrupt plan, led by Adesanya, extended to the settlement agreements. The tribunal specifically noted that a corrupt deal was indeed made between Adesanya and the former senior Nigerian officials who signed the settlement agreement, which is the basis of the current arbitration against Nigeria.”

He added that the tribunal noticed Mr Adesanya’s pattern of corrupt actions went back to the start of the Mambilla dispute.

“This pattern creates what the tribunal called a regular way of working with important Nigerian government officials using financial incentives.

“Because of this, Sunrise and Adesanya were ordered to cover most of the costs, 75 percent of Nigeria’s legal fees and expenses, plus interest at 10 percent per year, compounded annually.

“The tribunal expressed hope that this would discourage Adesanya and his companies from filing more useless legal cases against Nigeria.”

He praised President Bola Tinubu’s leadership, saying he has always believed that Nigeria should not give in to fraudulent contracts and the claims that come from them.

“I also want to thank the president for making sure that we had the financial and logistical support needed to defend this case effectively.

“We will keep giving strong legal advice and good representation for the Federal Republic of Nigeria, ensuring that justice is served and our nation’s integrity is maintained.