Malami denies bribery finding in $2.7bn Mambilla arbitration

Former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, SAN, has rejected allegations that he entered into a corrupt arrangement with Sunrise Power and Transmission Company Limited promoter, Leno Adesanya, over the long-running Mambilla Hydroelectric Power Project dispute.

Malami, in a statement issued by his Special Assistant on Media, Mohammed Doka, on Tuesday, also welcomed the outcome of the arbitration, which saw the International Chamber of Commerce tribunal dismiss claims brought by Sunrise against Nigeria.

The 616-page final award, delivered in Paris on September 16, 2026, rejected Sunrise’s claims arising from the Mambilla project and directed the company and Adesanya to reimburse Nigeria for a substantial portion of its legal costs.

However, reports on the award said the tribunal made adverse findings concerning Malami’s handling of a proposed settlement with Sunrise, including a finding of a corrupt arrangement involving the former AGF and Adesanya.

Malami disputed the characterisation of the proceedings as a criminal finding against him, stressing that the case before the ICC was a commercial arbitration.

“The proceedings were commercial arbitration proceedings between parties to a dispute. They were not a criminal prosecution of Abubakar Malami, SAN, and the award does not constitute a criminal conviction of him,” he said.

He nevertheless acknowledged the seriousness of the issues raised in relation to his role, insisting that the findings should be considered against the complete documentary and evidentiary record.

“Those matters should not be ignored, trivialised or answered by speculation,” he said.