Paris ICC Court Ruling: Atiku Unfit For Nigeria’s Presidency, Says APC Campaign Council

The All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council has said former Vice President Atiku Abubakar is unfit to be President of Nigeria, citing revelations from the International Arbitration Tribunal in Paris over the stalled Mambilla Hydroelectric Power Project.

In a statement signed by its Spokesman, Dele Alake in Abuja, the Council said the tribunal’s proceedings in the case instituted by Sunrise Power and Transmission Company Ltd and Leno Adesanya against Nigeria has implications for Atiku’s candidacy.

According to the statement, hearings at the International Arbitration Tribunal under the auspices of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) in Paris revealed that Atiku and former power minister Olu Agunloye allegedly worked together to sign an illegal power contract with Sunrise for the 3960mw Mambila Hydroelectric Power Project in Taraba State.

The Council alleged that the contract was signed in the dying days of former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s first term and put Nigeria at financial risk despite objections at the Federal Executive Council meeting.

The statement further alleged that a $500,000 payment was wired to the US Citibank account of Jennifer Douglas through an offshore account, China Castle Investment, in January 2003, months before the alleged award of the Build-Operate-Transfer contract to Sunrise on May 22, 2003.

The APC Campaign Council referenced a US Senate report titled “Keeping Foreign Corruption out of the United States: Four Case Histories” and quoted the ICC Tribunal as stating: “There is a close connection in time between the moment the USD 500,000 payment was made to the wife of Vice-President Abubakar on 30 January 2003 and the alleged award of the BOT contract to Sunrise on 22 May 2003.”

The Council said that after the Nigerian government declined to go ahead with the contract, Sunrise and Leno Adesanya made a claim against the Federal Republic of Nigeria, demanding $680 million as settlement and over $2.7 billion in compensation and interest relating to disputes associated with the development of the project.

It noted that Nigeria fought the claim, similar to the Process and Industrial Development (P&ID) case in which an $11 billion claim was made against the country.

The Council also stated that former Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo and Muhammadu Buhari went to Paris to defend Nigeria in the arbitration, while Atiku chose not to give evidence.

The APC Campaign Council called on Atiku Abubakar, who it described as the African Democratic Congress (ADC) candidate, to bow out of the presidential race.

The statement said the people of Taraba State should note that the stalled project would have been the biggest hydro-power project in Nigeria with economic benefits for the state.

The APC Campaign Council said Atiku has once again proven he will compromise Nigeria’s best interests for personal gain, an allegation Atiku has previously denied.