The Federal Government has said the three presidential jets seized abroad are sovereign assets used solely for sovereign purposes and are therefore immune from attachment as a Chinese firm, Zongshan Fucheng Industrial Investment Co. Limited, has sought to do.
The Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi, SAN stated this in a statement on Thursday, while reacting to the seizure of the aircraft on the order of a French court.
The statement recalled that, on 14th August 2024, the Federal Government of Nigeria became aware of the interim attachment of three presidential aircraft undergoing routine maintenance in France.
The said temporary attachment was made pursuant to exparte orders issued by the Judicial Court of Paris on 7th March 2024 and 12 August 2024 respectively at the instance of Messrs. Zhongshan Fucheng Industrial Investment Co. Limited, a Chinese company seeking to enforce a Final Award granted in its favour on 26th March 2021, against one of Nigeria’s sub-nationals, Ogun State government.
Fagbemi noted in the statement made available to newsmen in Abuja by his media aide, Kamarudeen Ogundele on Thursday that the arbitral award arose from an arbitration proceeding which commenced in 2018 as a fallout of a contractual dispute between the Chinese company and Ogun State Government over the operation and management of Ogun Guangdong Free Trade Zone.
The AGF clarified that, though the dispute originated from engagements of the Ogun State Government, however, the consequential enforcement actions are being directed against the Federal Government and its assets in line with extant principles of international law which holds that the actions of a subnational or local entity are attributable to the State or country itself.
He disclosed that the office of the National Security Adviser (NSA) and his office have already set in motion both legal and diplomatic steps to ensure the discharge of inappropriate orders against the aircraft, which are covered by sovereign immunity.
While further actions are being put in place to resolve the entire dispute through available legal means, Fagbemi said, “the firm position of the Federal Government remains that the aircraft in question are sovereign assets used solely for sovereign purposes and are therefore immune from attachment as Zhongshan has sought to do”.
Checks revealed that two of the jets, which are part of the presidential air fleet, were recently put up for sale, while the third, an Airbus A330, was purchased by Nigeria recently but not yet delivered.
Report said the seizure of the presidential jets is a result of an application by Zhongshan, a Chinese company whose export processing zone management contract was revoked by the Ogun State Government in 2016.
It resulted in the institution of a suit before a tribunal which led to the establishment of an independent arbitral tribunal chaired by the former President of the UK Supreme Court.
The court then awarded Zhongshan about $74.5 million in compensation, but the Ogun State Government, which has the dispute with Zhongshan, has yet to honour the award.
The presidential jets that have been seized include a Dassault Falcon 7X at Le Bourget airport in Paris, a Boeing 737, and an Airbus A330 at Basel-Mulhouse airport in Switzerland.
The jets are undergoing maintenance while the Nigerian government under President Bola Tinubu reportedly paid over $100 million for one of the jets, the Airbus recently.
According to the court order, it prohibits the movement, sale, or purchase of the jets until Zhongshan receives the awarded $74.5 million. Bailiffs have served papers for each aircraft, it was further reported.
