Leno Adesanya, the promoter of Sunrise Power, has told an International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) tribunal that the $500,000 he transferred to Jennifer Douglas, the former wife of ex-Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, was connected to a foreign-exchange transaction carried out on Atiku’s behalf.
The payment was made on January 30, 2003, through China Castle Investments Limited, a company controlled by Adesanya. The transfer took place about four months before Sunrise Power was purportedly awarded the controversial Mambilla power project.
Nigeria had argued that the payment was connected to the disputed contract. Sunrise Power and Adesanya, however, rejected the allegation, insisting that the money was part of a legitimate foreign-exchange transaction.
According to Adesanya, the dollars transferred to Douglas’s bank account in the United States had been purchased for Atiku in exchange for naira.
But the tribunal found that Adesanya was unable to provide documents supporting the explanation. There was no evidence showing the naira payment, the exchange rate used, instructions from Atiku or his aides, or the specific commercial purpose of the transaction. Neither Atiku nor Douglas appeared before the tribunal to give evidence.
Adesanya initially told the tribunal that Atiku, through his lawyers, had confirmed that the payment was a foreign-exchange transaction. During cross-examination, however, he said the explanation had first been relayed to him by a person he identified as “Dr Ndukwe,” whom he described as Atiku’s doctor. He later said confirmation also came through lawyers.
Adesanya described his belief that the transaction originated from Atiku as a “logical assumption.”
The tribunal said there was no independent evidence confirming the alleged contacts or instructions. It also pointed out that China Castle Investments Limited, the company used to make the transfer, was not licensed to conduct foreign-exchange transactions.
In its findings, the tribunal noted Atiku’s involvement in the Mambilla project dating back to 2001, as well as his role in leading a Nigerian delegation to China in 2002. It concluded that he wielded considerable political power and influence within the Nigerian government during the first half of 2003.
However, the tribunal stressed that Atiku was not a party to the arbitration and there was no evidence showing that he personally instructed Adesanya to make the $500,000 transfer.
In the end, the tribunal rejected Sunrise Power’s claims against Nigeria and ordered the company and Adesanya to reimburse 75 percent of Nigeria’s legal costs.
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