Former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, has defended his role in the controversial $200 million settlement between the Federal Government and Sunrise Power over the Mambilla Hydropower Project, insisting that his actions were motivated by Nigeria’s interests and not personal financial gain.
Malami, in a statement issued on Tuesday through his Special Assistant on Media, Mohammed Bello Doka, was responding to findings contained in a 616-page award by an International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) tribunal, which ruled that the settlement agreement and a subsequent addendum were products of corruption and therefore unenforceable.
The tribunal found that Malami and Leno Adesanya, the promoter of Sunrise Power, had a common intention to secure a settlement favourable to the company at Nigeria’s expense. It also concluded that Malami had cooperated in committing Nigeria to terms that could have exposed the country to a liability of up to $400 million.
Malami rejected any suggestion that he acted in return for a personal financial benefit.
“Malami rejects any suggestion that his official actions were undertaken pursuant to a corrupt agreement or in exchange for personal financial benefit,” his statement said, adding that the allegations should be assessed against the complete evidentiary record.
He particularly questioned the evidentiary basis of the allegation, pointing out that no evidence was presented before the tribunal showing that he received money or another financial benefit from Sunrise, Adesanya or any related entity.
He also noted that the $200 million settlement was never paid by the Federal Government to Sunrise.
The dispute dates back to 2003, years before Malami became Attorney-General.
According to his statement, successive administrations, attorneys-general and government ministries had dealt with Sunrise’s claims, which ran into billions of dollars and had become an obstacle to financing discussions surrounding the long-delayed Mambilla project.
In January 2020, Malami and then Minister of Power Saleh Mamman signed a settlement agreement under which the Federal Government would pay Sunrise $200 million. An addendum signed two months later divided the payment into two $100 million instalments and provided for an additional $200 million default payment, apart from interest.
Sunrise promoter Adesanya subsequently alleged before the tribunal that Malami and Mamman demanded that he pay half of the settlement as bribes. He claimed he had recordings of the conversations but did not produce them, citing concerns for his safety and that of his family. The tribunal regarded his refusal to produce the recordings as significant to its assessment of the evidence.
Malami said that after former President Muhammadu Buhari refused to approve payment, he instructed government lawyers to resist attempts by Sunrise to enforce the settlement and to protect the Federal Government’s legal position.
He further cautioned against describing the tribunal’s findings as a criminal conviction, stressing that the proceedings were commercial arbitration and that he was not a party to the case or given an opportunity to present his own side before the tribunal.
Malami said he would provide a more comprehensive response after reviewing the full tribunal award and underlying records.
