A witness in the ongoing trial of former Minister of Power and Steel, Olu Agunloye, told the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court, Abuja, on Monday that neither former President Olusegun Obasanjo nor the Federal Executive Council (FEC) approved the controversial $6 billion contract awarded to Sunrise Power and Transmission Company Limited for the Mambilla Hydropower Project.
Testifying before Justice J.O. Onwuegbuzie, the third prosecution witness, Umar Babangida—an investigator with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC)—revealed that Obasanjo made it clear, both in writing and during a meeting with EFCC investigators, that he never authorised Agunloye to award the contract.
According to a statement issued by EFCC’s Head of Media and Publicity, Dele Oyewale, Babangida stated that a Certified True Copy (CTC) of a letter written by Obasanjo on November 27, 2023, and addressed to the Ministry of Justice, confirmed that no approval was granted for the contract.
“The former President stated that he received a memo from Agunloye and only minuted on it, directing him to present it to the FEC for deliberation.
He did not give any approval for contract award, and no such approval was granted during the FEC meeting on May 21, 2003,” Babangida told the court.
Further in his testimony, Babangida said that during a meeting with investigators on February 7, 2024, Obasanjo reaffirmed his position and submitted a signed statement reiterating that the contract awarded on May 22, 2003, was not authorised by him or the Council.
“Obasanjo told the team that Agunloye was directed to withdraw his memorandum and open up the project for competitive bidding.
Yet, just 24 hours after that directive, he went ahead to award the contract to Sunrise Power,” NAIJAONPOINT said.
Agunloye is currently facing a seven-count charge brought by the EFCC, bordering on fraudulent contract award and official corruption in connection with the Mambilla Power Project deal.
Babangida further disclosed that financial investigations revealed suspicious payments made to Agunloye by Shotire Jide Abiodun, a director in Sunrise Power and personal assistant to the company’s owner, Leno Laitan Adesanya.
“We traced several bank accounts operated by the defendant and found that on August 10, 2019, he received ₦3.6 million from Abiodun.
Another ₦500,000 came in on October 22, 2019, and ₦1.1 million on November 13, 2019—all from the same individual,” he stated.
Under cross-examination by the EFCC prosecuting counsel, Abba Muhammed, SAN, NAIJAONPOINT confirmed that the transactions raised red flags and further established financial ties between the former minister and the company at the centre of the contract scandal.
The trial was adjourned to June 18, 2025, for continuation.