- By Halimah Olamide
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has declared wanted the promoter of Sunrise Power and Transmission Limited, Mr. Leno Laitan Adesanya over the Mambilla Power Project.
Adesanya is wanted in connection with some alleged financial transactions between him and former Minister of Power under President Olusegun Obasanjo, Dr. Olu Agunloye.
NPO Reports that Agunloye was arrested towards the end of last year but was released on bail.
He has been accused by Obasanjo of unilaterally awarding a $6bn Mambilla Power Project.
In its notice, issued on Tuesday, EFCC said Adesanya is wanted for “an alleged case of conspiracy and corrupt offer to public officers”.
While arraigning Agunloye, EFCC had claimed that Agunloye corruptly received a sum N3,600,000.00 through his Guaranty Trust Bank account no.0022530926 from Sunrise Power and Transmission Company Limited (SPTCL) and Leno Adesanya for approving the Mambilla Hydroelectric Power Station project.
In a case believed to be similar to the PD&I, Adesanya’s company had dragged the Nigerian government to arbitration over alleged breach of contract.
Sunrise Power had taken its case against Nigeria to the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), Paris, France, claiming it was awarded a $6 billion build, operate and transfer (BOT) contract in May 2003 by the Obasanjo administration.
He alleged that the federal government broke the terms of the agreement.
Among others, Sunrise had claimed that it went into some financial commitments before the Nigerian government broke the terms of the contract seeking about $2.3m in compensations.
But the Nigerian government has claimed that Sunrise Power corruptly paid funds into officials accounts noting that Agunloye was a major beneficiary of the said payments.