Atiku Abubakar, presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), says he will complete the Mambilla hydropower project if elected president.
Atiku spoke on Saturday at the ADC presidential campaign
rally in Bauchi, where he restated his promise to restore petrol subsidy and
“bring back” electricity subsidy if his party is elected into power in 2027.
He said the north-east is blessed with huge mineral
resources, including crude oil, but past administrations have failed to develop
the region “because they did not want us to benefit from it”.
“I promise you that, by God’s grace, if you vote for us, we
will ensure this oil work is completed for the prosperity of the north-east,”
he said in Hausa.
“For those of you who are older, you will recall that since
the era of Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, there have been promises to build a dam
called the Mambilla Hydroelectric Power Project, which past governments failed
to actualise.
“If God gives us the opportunity, and ADC is voted into
power along with me, I promise you that we will continue and complete that
project.”
The former vice-president also pledged to abolish what he
described as “unnecessary taxes imposed on Nigerians” without justification.
He said his administration will also tackle insecurity and
banditry in the north-east, saying perpetrators would not escape under his
administration.
“Finally, we know that here in the north-east, we face
insecurity issues and banditry. I swear, if the president were not somehow,
nobody would dare to commit this nonsense under my watch and get away with it,”
he said.
He urged residents to vote for the ADC in 2027 and protect
their votes until they are officially recorded.
The former vice-president thanked Bala Mohammed, governor of
Bauchi, for providing the party with access to the stadium and government
lodges for its campaign rally, despite the ADC being in the opposition.
“The Bauchi state governor did not take things too far, he
gave us the opportunity to campaign in this stadium and provided us with all
the government lodges. For doing that, we thank him, even though we remain in
the opposition,” he said.
MAMBILLA BACK STORY
The Mambilla hydropower project in Taraba was conceived in
1972 under the military government of Yakubu Gowon but has neve been completed
for decades.
Atiku, who became vice-president in 1999, was involved in
the project by at least 2001, according to the International Chamber of
Commerce (ICC) tribunal.
On October 18, 2001, Sunrise Power and Transmission,
promoted by Leno Adesanya, wrote to then President Olusegun Obasanjo and Atiku,
expressing interest in the project.
In July 2002, the former vice-president led a government
delegation to Beijing, where Nigeria and China’s state-owned NCPEC signed a
memorandum of understanding covering Mambilla and other projects.
On January 30, 2003, Adesanya’s offshore firm transferred
$500,000 to Jennifer Douglas, Atiku’s then wife, a payment Adesanya told the
tribunal was a foreign-exchange transaction carried out for Atiku.
On May 21, 2003, Olu Agunloye, then power minister,
presented a memo to the federal Executive Council (FEC) seeking approval for
Sunrise to handle the project.
However, the council asked him to withdraw it.
Atiku was said to have supported Obasanjo’s position and
suggested that the ministry consider all options.
However, Agunloye wrote to Sunrise the following day,
conveying approval for the award at a provisional sum of $6 billion.
Sunrise commenced arbitration at the ICC on October 10,
2017, seeking $2.354 billion in compensation for breach of agreement.
However, in its September 16, 2026 final award, the tribunal
dismissed the company’s claims that Nigeria breached its contractual
obligations under the settlement agreement and the addendum.
It also directed Sunrise and its promoter to refund
Nigeria’s legal fees of $11.8 million.
It identified “significant red flags” surrounding the
$500,000 payment and Atiku’s influence.
But the former vice-president has denied involvement in the
contract award and any indictment by the tribunal.
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