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The All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council has accused the African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, of compromising Nigeria’s interests for personal gain over the stalled Mambila Hydroelectric Power Project in Taraba State.
The council made the allegation in a statement signed by its spokesman, Dele Alake, in Abuja on Friday, following disclosures it attributed to proceedings before an International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) arbitration tribunal in Paris.
The APC council alleged that Atiku, who was Vice-President under former President Olusegun Obasanjo, worked with former Minister of Power, Olu Agunloye, in the signing of a Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) contract with Sunrise Power and Transmission Company Ltd for the 3,960-megawatt Mambila project.
It claimed the contract was signed despite objections and reservations expressed by Obasanjo and the Federal Executive Council.
The council further alleged that $500,000 was transferred through an offshore company, China Castle Investment, to the United States bank account of Atiku’s then-wife, Jennifer Douglas, months before the alleged award of the contract.
It cited a United States Senate investigation into foreign corruption and said the transaction, alongside other transfers, had featured in the report.
According to the APC statement, the Paris tribunal noted a “close connection in time” between the alleged $500,000 payment on January 30, 2003, and the alleged award of the BOT contract to Sunrise on May 22, 2003.
The council also claimed that Sunrise and its principal, Leno Adesanya, subsequently instituted arbitration proceedings against Nigeria over the Mambila project, seeking substantial compensation.
The APC Campaign Council alleged that Atiku did not appear before the tribunal to give evidence, while Obasanjo and former President Muhammadu Buhari appeared in proceedings to defend Nigeria's position.
The council said the developments reinforced allegations previously made against Atiku by Obasanjo in his memoir, My Watch.
It called on Atiku to withdraw from the 2027 presidential race, alleging that the Mambila controversy was only part of what it described as wider corruption allegations against him.
The APC council also accused Atiku of contributing to the delay in the commencement of the Mambila project and said the stalled project had deprived Taraba State and Nigeria of potential economic benefits.
The allegations contained in the statement are claims by the APC Presidential Campaign Council and would be subject to the findings and legal determinations of the relevant courts or arbitral proceedings.
