Mambilla: Malami Welcomes Nigeria’s Victory, Demands Full Disclosure of Tribunal Findings

Mambilla: Malami Welcomes Nigeria’s Victory, Demands Full Disclosure of Tribunal Findings

Former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, has welcomed Nigeria’s victory in the arbitration dispute with Sunrise Power and Transmission Company Limited over the Mambilla Hydroelectric Power Project, while urging transparency in the interpretation of the tribunal’s findings.

An International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) arbitration tribunal in Paris recently dismissed Sunrise Power’s claims against Nigeria, including demands for hundreds of millions of dollars arising from a 2020 settlement agreement connected to the long-delayed power project.

However, the tribunal’s 616-page final award reportedly contained serious findings concerning Malami’s role in the settlement negotiations, including an alleged corrupt arrangement involving the former minister and Sunrise promoter, Leno Adesanya.

Reacting through a statement signed by his media aide, Bello Doka, Malami said Nigeria’s protection from substantial financial exposure was an outcome every patriotic citizen should welcome, regardless of political affiliation.

He, however, urged the public to distinguish between the outcome of international commercial arbitration, findings made in determining contractual claims and criminal adjudication against an individual.

“The award does not constitute a criminal conviction of him,” Doka said.

He acknowledged reports of serious findings concerning the settlement agreement and its addendum, presidential approval, communications between Malami and Adesanya, and an alleged corrupt arrangement.

Doka maintained that the issues should neither be ignored nor trivialised, insisting that they must be examined against the complete evidentiary and documentary record rather than isolated passages circulating in the media.

He said Malami’s office would issue a comprehensive response after reviewing the full award and underlying documents.

### Malami’s Office Provides Historical Context

The former AGF’s office also disputed suggestions that the Mambilla contractual controversy originated during Malami’s tenure.

According to Doka, the dispute dates back to 2003, when Sunrise became involved in the proposed hydroelectric project, with litigation and competing contractual claims predating Malami’s appointment as Attorney-General.

He said Malami inherited a longstanding dispute that had passed through successive administrations, Attorneys-General, ministries and contractual arrangements.

Doka cited a 2012 General Project Execution Agreement involving Sunrise and Sinohydro, arguing that efforts to resolve the dispute and advance the project predated Malami’s tenure.

He further stated that documentary records showed that, in April 2016, the Chief of Staff to then-President Muhammadu Buhari communicated a presidential directive concerning the resolution of outstanding disputes and competing interests surrounding the project.

“As Attorney-General and chief legal officer of the Federation, Malami was required to advise the government concerning the legal exposure created by those disputes and possible means of resolving them,” he said.

### Why $200m Settlement Was Considered

Addressing the controversy surrounding the proposed $200 million settlement, Doka urged the public to distinguish between assessing the terms of the agreement and understanding why negotiations were initiated.

He said Sunrise had asserted claims running into billions of dollars and initially proposed $500 million as a full and final settlement during negotiations in London in November 2019.

Federal Government representatives, he said, countered with $100 million before negotiations subsequently produced a $200 million figure.

According to him, the central consideration was whether a potentially multibillion-dollar exposure, continuing litigation, financing difficulties and delays to the Mambilla project could be resolved through a substantially smaller negotiated settlement.

### Buhari Rejected Proposed Payment

Doka acknowledged that former President Buhari ultimately declined to approve the proposed $200 million payment to Sunrise.

He said Buhari indicated on April 20, 2020, that the Federal Government did not have the funds to pay Sunrise, a position Malami communicated to the company two days later.

He also referred to a January 2021 request for presidential approval, which, according to reports on the tribunal award, Buhari rejected with the words: “Not approved.”

Doka said that following the rejection, Malami instructed counsel representing the Federal Government to resist Sunrise’s attempt to enforce the settlement terms against Nigeria.

He argued that this subsequent conduct should be considered alongside the earlier negotiations in assessing the former minister’s role.

### Former Minister Rejects Corruption Allegation

On the tribunal’s reported finding of a corrupt arrangement involving Malami and Adesanya, Doka said the former minister rejected any suggestion that his official actions were undertaken in exchange for personal financial benefit.

He maintained that the allegation should be tested against the complete evidentiary record.

Doka also questioned reports that Adesanya claimed to possess audio and video recordings relevant to the allegations but did not produce them before the tribunal.

He said the existence, authenticity, contents and non-production of any such recordings were matters of evidentiary importance.

The tribunal, however, reportedly found evidence of an unlawful arrangement involving Malami and Adesanya while rejecting Sunrise’s claims against Nigeria. It also held that the settlement agreement and its addendum were not binding on Nigeria because they lacked the required presidential approval and were unenforceable on public-policy grounds.

Doka stressed that the arbitration award should not be characterised as a criminal conviction of Malami, noting that the proceedings concerned contractual claims.

He added that any allegation of criminal wrongdoing should be addressed through appropriate lawful processes.

The former AGF’s office further noted that Nigeria’s successful defence prevented potentially substantial financial exposure, with the tribunal ordering Sunrise and Adesanya to reimburse Nigeria for legal costs reportedly amounting to approximately $11.8 million.

Doka said Malami remained gratified whenever Nigeria’s legal interests and public finances were protected, irrespective of the administration under which such outcomes were achieved.

He urged the public to consider the full history and documentary record of the Mambilla dispute rather than attributing the controversy entirely to one public officer.