Former Nigerian Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo and Muhammadu Buhari reportedly provided contradictory testimonies before the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) Court of Arbitration in Paris, France, regarding the controversial $6 billion Mambilla Power Project awarded to Sunrise Power and Transmission Company of Nigeria in 2003.
The legal dispute, which has spanned nearly two decades, is centered on allegations by Sunrise Power and its Chairman, Chief Leno Adesanya, who is demanding $2.3 billion in compensation from the Nigerian government for an alleged breach of contract.
Testifying before the ICC on January 22, 2025, Obasanjo dismissed the legitimacy of the 2003 contract, arguing that it was unlawfully signed by the then Minister of Power, Olu Agunloye, just 24 hours after the Federal Executive Council (FEC) had rejected it.
Henzodaily learnt that he stated that a minister lacks the executive authority to unilaterally award a contract of such magnitude, especially after the FEC had already dismissed Sunrise Power’s bid.
“The agreement relied on by Sunrise Power was never valid. A minister cannot single-handedly approve a contract after the Federal Executive Council had rejected it,” Obasanjo said.
Buhari Contradicts Obasanjo, Admits Nigeria Awarded The Contract
According to transcripts of witness statements obtained by SaharaReporters, former President Muhammadu Buhari, who testified a day later, on January 23, 2025, provided a different account, admitting that the contract was indeed awarded to Sunrise Power.
When questioned by the prosecution, Buhari repeatedly stated that he could not recall several key details of the case but acknowledged that his administration had engaged in negotiations with the company.
“I directed the Attorney General, Abubakar Malami (SAN), and the Minister of Works and Power, Babatunde Fashola (SAN), to negotiate with Sunrise Power,” Buhari reportedly told the arbitration panel.
His statement undermined Nigeria’s defense, with some observers interpreting his testimony as an admission of the government’s liability in the case.
Buhari also made a controversial assertion, suggesting that Nigeria—not Sunrise Power—was acting like the “extortionist” in the dispute, a claim that further weakened the federal government’s argument against the compensation demand.
Meanwhile, Agunloye, the former Power Minister accused of wrongfully awarding the contract, is currently facing trial in Nigeria for charges related to forgery, corruption, and abuse of office.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has alleged that Agunloye awarded the contract without budgetary approval, financial backing, or proper authorization.
However, Agunloye has denied any wrongdoing, arguing that he is being used as a scapegoat by the federal government in an attempt to undermine Sunrise Power’s claims at the ICC
For instance, when questioned about the power of a minister in the Nigerian government, Obasanjo said, “The minister has no executive power. So as far as executive power is concerned, the minister is powerless.”
The former President said the minister derives his power from the chief executive (President) and the Federal Executive Council.
“I was a minister before. And within the Ministry of Works and Housing, if I want to do anything, maintenance of road and all that, it’s my job. Building houses is my job. But when it came to what we call the Africa road network, and you have to talk of Mombasa to Dhaka, African road, that becomes beyond my power. I have to take it to the Federal Executive Council,” he said.
When asked by the prosecution lawyer if Agunloye had full authority as minister to issue the 2003 BOT award to Sunrise Company in the absence of a mandatory public procurement process in 2003, Obasanjo said no.
He said, “He had no power at all. Absolutely no power at all.
“I say that because for any issue of award of contract beyond 50 million, it must come to the council, and he brought the memo to council, and before he brought that memo to council, his predecessor, Agagu, started the process, and he then continued, and then he was given specific instruction what to do, and −− which is to bring a memo to council, and he brought a memo to council, and the memo −− he asked for five prayers; all the prayers were turned down.
“He −− and the memo was withdrawn, which means that is the end of that memo. The memo was withdrawn. And the second aspect was thathe was given another mandate of what to do, to come back to council.
“Now, when you have the council, it takes three to four days before the conclusion of the council is prepared, and we have council every week. So you don’t get another memo or a conclusion for at least five days.
“Now, a day after that memo was turned down, Agunloye wrote a letter awarding contract on behalf of the Federal Government of Nigeria. We, Government, the Government that I chair, where the Vice President was a member of the council and 40 other ministers and took decision, and then he came up and said −− now, can you show that letter, in a flimsy letter awarding $6 billion contract, and on what basis?
“Now −− and, in fact, if we take council meeting, before you can act on that council meeting, the minutes of the council meeting or what they call conclusion should come out, and they didn’t come out for the first four to five days.
“The second day, Agunloye wrote a letter, and that letter was hidden from me until very recently when, of course, I have to comment on it, which is the reason why I am here.”
Following further questioning along that line, Obasanjo insisted that Agunloye’s memo’s was killed, saying, “No because whatever he has brought in, Government funding or no Government funding, that memo was turned down and that memo died. Dead.”
The lawyer also asked Obasanjo if the extract of the FEC meeting of 21 May 2003 in evidence, showing Agunloye’s memo was killed, could not have been tampered with considering the former president’s claim of widespread corruption in his deposition.
Obasanjo answered saying, “I will not join you in saying that.
“What you are saying is that the Federal Government has cooked up something. I will not accept that for Nigeria and I will not accept that in anywhere. No.”
He said the document was taken from the archive, adding, “Because −− no, the corruption that I refer to does not go into the point of changing minutes. What are you saying, brother?
“I will still stand that the level of corruption does not go into Government documents being perverted the way you have (described).”
“There was no contract as far as Sunrise is concerned. No contract, no matter whatever he may say. No contract,” he added.
However, Buhari, while being questioned, said he directed Babatunde Fashola to find a way to resolve the issues surrounding the Mambilla power project.
He admitted that the dispute between the Federal Government and Sunrise relating to the Mambilla Project was one of those issues.
But when asked if he received a proposal from Mr Fashola regarding how the dispute might be resolved, Buhari said he could not remember most of it.
He also said he could not remember if he instructed Mr Fashola to exclude Sunrise from the Mambilla Project during his administration.
When asked again: “Do you remember whether, at any stage, you instructed Mr Malami or Mr Fashola or your Chief of Staff to exclude Sunrise from the execution of the Mambilla Project?”
Buhari replied, “All I can remember is that both the ministers, Fashola and Malami, were with me −− with me for the eight years. I was there in power, and I gave them full responsibility for −− to run their ministries. So I cannot remember off head details of what individually they did in their ministries.”
Buhari was asked: “Did your administration cancel the 2012 general project execution agreement between Sunrise and the Federal Government before the EPC contract was entered into in 2017?”
The former president replied, saying, “As I said, the ministries, they have −− they know their limitations, how much contract they can award, but there are also facilities for them to take what is above their authority to the Council.”
Not satisfied with Buhari’s response, the lawyer asked again, and the former president said, “I could not remember, honestly.”
Buhari later said Nigeria awarded the contract to Sunrise Company, contradicting Obasanjo’s position in his testimony.
He said, “Yes, I think Nigeria gave the contract to them and then, of course, could not pay, I think, could not finance it.”
When the lawyer asked: “Do you accept, therefore, that the Sunrise problem was a self −inflicted problem created by Nigeria for itself?”
Buhari replied, saying, “Well, on −− on the 12th and 18th −− I think Sunrise can accuse Nigeria, virtually successfully, for giving its contract and refusing to own up giving the contract.”
He also said Sunrise Power and Transmission Company was not wrong to have sued Nigeria for alleged breach of agreement, saying, “Yes, there is nothing wrong for them to −− you know, to go on a litigation, let me put it that way.
“You know, for refusing to honour the contract given to them.
“Well, if the contract was formally given to them, they cannot be accused, you know, of refusing to perform, if the contract is virtually given to them legally.”
Buhari said he also gave his ministers approval to negotiate a settlement with Sunrise company and that when they agreed to $200 million, he told them Nigeria could not afford it.
“Yes, I think I −− I was aware about it, but I said I disapprove it. It was more than $200 million, United States dollars,” he said.
The lawyer asked, “And that agreement that they reached was with your authority and permission, wasn’t it? You authorized them to agree that figure; any figure they were comfortable with. Is that right, Mr President?”
He replied, “Yes, I authorised them to −− to discuss and agree, but −−.”
Buhari insisted that Nigeria could not afford to pay $200 million, saying, “We don’t have the $200 million. This is what I said. We don’t have the 200 million United States dollars, and it’s true. We don’t have.”
However, the lawyer read Malami’s letter stating that the then finance minister said Nigeria could afford to pay the money in instalments.
Buhari agreed that it is wrong for a government to enter into a written contract and then walk away from it.
When further asked: “Do you also agree that it is more offensive for the same Government which has breached a written contract to turn round and call the other party an extortionist?”
Buhari replied, “Well, I think in this case, it’s the Government that is an extortionist.”