Presidency Slams Chinese Company for Alleged Plan to Strip Country of Jets

The Nigerian Presidency has accused Chinese company Zhongshan Fucheng Industrial Investment Co. Ltd. of deceitfully attempting to seize Nigeria's offshore assets.

Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, clarified that the Federal Government has no contractual obligation to the company.

The issue stems from a 2007 contract with the Ogun State government to manage a free-trade zone, which was revoked in 2015.

Onanuga stated, "The case in which Zhongshan is trying to use every unorthodox means to strip our offshore assets is between the company and the Ogun State government."

He further explained that the Federal Government is fully aware of efforts being made by the Ogun State government to reach an amicable resolution on the matter.

Zhongshan misled the Judicial Court in Paris into attaching Nigeria’s presidential jets in its judgment against the Ogun government.

Onanuga faulted the use of the presidential jets, which were on routine maintenance in France, stating, "The presidential jets are assets of a Sovereign entity protected by diplomatic immunity, which forbids any foreign court from issuing an order against them."

According to Onanuga, "We are convinced the Chinese company misled the Judicial Court of Paris regarding the use and nature of the assets it seeks to attach and did not fully disclose to the court as required by law." He emphasized that the Federal Government was not under any contractual obligation with the Chinese company.

The dispute began when the contract with Ogun was revoked in 2015, and arbitration started in 2016. By 2019, the arbitration hearing had concluded, and the Arbitral Panel awarded over 60 million dollars against the Federal Government of Nigeria, a co-defendant, despite Zhongshan only having erected a perimeter fence around the free-trade zone.

Based on legal advice, the Ogun government resolved to resist the enforcement of the award successfully in eight different jurisdictions.

Onanuga highlighted that Zhongshan obtained two orders from the Judicial Court of Paris dated March 7 and August 12 without duly notifying the Federal Government of Nigeria and Ogun government.

He described this as an "arm-twisting tactic" and noted that the same Chinese company had tried to enforce its questionable judgment in the UK and USA but failed.

He also pointed out that unscrupulous and questionable individuals were falsely presenting themselves as investors with the sole objective of undercutting and scamming governments in Africa.

"Zhongshan appeared to have sold the judgment they got to a venture capitalist seeking to make money by embarrassing the Federal Government and President Bola Tinubu," Onanuga said.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the last meeting for settlement discussions was held in September 2023 in London, attended by several officials of Ogun, including Governor Dapo Abiodun and Prince Lateef Fagbemi, Attorney General/Minister of Justice.

However, Zhongshan's initial reasonable readiness to consider Ogun State’s offer was surprisingly reversed by the second day when it insisted on the government paying the full arbitration debt, leading to a breakdown of the mediation.

Onanuga reassured Nigerians that the Federal Government is working with the Ogun government to discharge this frivolous order in Paris immediately. "Nigerian government will always work to protect our national assets from predators and shylocks who masquerade as investors," he asserted.