The $6 billion Mambilla hydroelectric power project fraud case against Sunrise Power and Transmission Co. Ltd. founder, Leno Adesanya, has been halted by the Federal High Court in Abuja on Monday.
In addition, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC was ordered by Justice Inyang Ekwo to take down Adesanya’s name and picture off its wanted list.
The order is on hold while the Federal Ministry of Electricity and Steel and the firm resolve their contractual disagreement.
Also, the Judge mandated that any additional unfavourable information relative to or concerning Adesanya about any criminal charges related to the contract be removed by the anti-graft agency.
However, he declined to issue a remedy that would have required the defendants to pay N1 billion in compensation.
“On the issue of compensation, I have stated before that this court, at this moment, is concerned with the protection of the sanctity of the arbitral proceeding of the International Chamber of Commerce Court of Arbitration based on the UN Conventions on international dispute resolutions.
“Nigeria (the 2nd defendant in this case) is not just a signatory but has domesticated by AMA 2023.
“This judgement is to ensure that parties are compelled to do so. This is the order of this court,” he said.
M.S. Diri, SAN, the plaintiffs’ lawyer, filed the complaint FHC/ABJ/CS/267/2024, which resulted in the decision.
The complaint names the EFCC, the ministry, the federal government of Nigeria, and the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) as the first through fourth defendants, respectively.
The EFCC had proclaimed Mr Adesanya sought “an alleged case of conspiracy and corrupt offer to public officers” in connection with the Mambilla project.
However, Adesanya and Sunrise Power and Transmission Co. Ltd., the first and second plaintiffs, sued the defendants through their lawyers.
Diri requested a permanent injunction prohibiting the EFCC from further investigating, inviting, or posting Mr Adesanya’s name as a wanted person on its website: https://www.efcc.gov.ng and all other social media accounts and notice boards concerning the project.
The senior lawyer asked the court to rule on the propriety of the anti-graft commission’s authority to investigate the commercial transaction between his clients, the federal government, and the Ministry of Power, even though the case was already pending at the International Chamber of Commerce Court of Arbitration in Paris.
He contended that to ensure Nigeria’s long-term power supply, Mr Adesanya suggested building the Mambilla Hydroelectric Power Project through Sunrise Ltd., which would serve as the project’s special purpose entity.
He stated that Sunrise and its Chinese partners, North China Power and China Hydroelectric Companies, met with three power ministries in China to discuss the Zungeru and Mambilla projects.
He said that previous President Olusegun Obasanjo approved financial discussions for the project in 2005 and 2006, but that the federal government had yet to pay the plaintiffs under the contract.
He stated that to amicably settle the project’s concerns, the business submitted letters to the Ministry of Power, which resulted in meetings between his clients and the executive arm of the government.
“Following these, the federal government agreed to pay the 2nd plaintiff the sum of $200 million within 14 days of executing the Terms of Agreement, and failure to do so would trigger the commencement of 10% compound interest per annum.
“As a result of the Terms of Settlement, the arbitration in Case No. 23211 was withdrawn,” he said.
He stated that, rather than respecting the agreement, the federal government wrote to the AGF on April 22, 2020, requesting a reconsideration of the provisions.
“Consequently, the 2nd plaintiff instituted fresh arbitral proceedings: Sunrise Power and Transmission Company Limited v. federal government of Nigeria—ICC Case No. 26260/SPN/AB/CPB (Exhibits D and E),” the attorney commented.
He noted that the arbitration procedure was set for a virtual hearing on March 22.
Diri said that notwithstanding the ongoing lawsuit, the federal government and its security services, including the EFCC, attempted to criminalise and scandalise the Mambilla project to avoid its legal contractual duties.
In response, the EFCC’s counsel, Attah Ocholi, claimed that evidence of criminal behaviour was discovered against the plaintiffs throughout the inquiry, resulting in charges being filed in a High Court.
“On December 14, 2023, a warrant of arrest was issued against Adesanya to ensure his presence in court,” Ocholi said.
The EFCC also denied being used by the federal government or any other entity to witch-hunt or intimidate the plaintiffs, stating that the investigation and prosecution were related to the contract award for the Mambilla project without the approval of the Presidential and Federal Executive Councils.
Mr Ekwo, who delivered the ruling, found that because the ministry of power had opposed the plaintiffs’ claims and counterclaimed against them at the International Chamber of Commerce Court of Arbitration, the arbitral processes must be observed and preserved.
He emphasised that the Ministry of Electricity should not be viewed as a place where international business operations are risky, and local laws and agencies can be utilised against investors in the event of a disagreement.
Ekwo said that Sunrise Ltd. has initiated new arbitration procedures against the federal government, which are continuing.
Although the court agreed with the EFCC’s position that basic rights guaranteed by the constitution are not absolute, he concluded that the declaration did not serve as a defence against violations of fundamental rights that did not comply with constitutional provisions.
The judge also determined that the EFCC’s publishing of Mr Adesanya’s name and image as a “wanted person” on its website did not constitute a legitimate defence.
Ekwo then declared that the commission lacked the legal authority to investigate, resolve, or prosecute the contractual dispute between Sunrise Ltd., the Ministry of Power, and the federal government, which was pending before the International Chamber of Commerce Court of Arbitration in Paris under ICC Case Reference No. 26260/SPN/AB/CPB.
The anti-corruption agency is presently pursuing Olu Agunloye, a former minister of electricity and steel under Mr Obasanjo, in an FCT High Court for an alleged $6 billion Mambilla hydropower deal.
The EFCC claimed that Mr Agunloye “corruptly received the sum of N3,600,000.00” from Sunrise Power and Transmission Company Limited (SPTCL) and Leno Adesanya via his Guarantee Trust Bank account number: 0022530926 in exchange for sanctioning the Mambilla Hydroelectric Power Station Project.
