FG has denied forcing eminent Nigerians to testify in Paris over the ongoing $6 Billion Mambilla Arbitration.
NewsOnline Nigeria reports that the Federal Government has denied the claim that it compelled prominent Nigerians to Paris to testify for Nigeria in an ongoing arbitration proceeding involving the $6 billion Mambilla Hydroelectric Power Project.
Bayo Onanuga, the Special Adviser to the President (Information and Strategy) issued the denial in a statement on Saturday, January 18, 2025.
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Multiple reports had earlier claimed that the FG forced former Presidents, Olusegun Obasanjo, Muhammadu Buhari and former Minister of Power, Babatunde Fashola to Paris to testify for Nigeria.
Reacting, Onanuga described the reports as fake news, saying President Bola Tinubu did not force anyone to testify for or to refrain from testifying against Nigeria.
He said, “The attention of the Presidency has been drawn to some fake news on social media about an arbitration proceeding in Paris to which the Nigerian Government is a party.
“The private proceeding, which should not have been reported in the media, is entirely confidential until the international arbitrators decide.
“While respecting the confidentiality of the proceeding, we wish to state categorically that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has not forced anyone to testify for or to refrain from testifying against Nigeria.”
He explained that “All the eminent Nigerians involved in Nigeria’s defence are doing so willingly and out of sheer patriotism and conviction,” adding that “Tinubu and the entire country are grateful to them.”
