On Monday, Judge Robin Knowles of the Business and Property Court in London delivered a landmark victory to the Federal Government of Nigeria, nullifying a $9.6 billion arbitral award made in 2017 in favor of the Process & Industry Development (P&ID) Limited. Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, celebrated this judgment as a major blow to predatory international investors who sought to defraud Nigeria through fraudulent schemes.
Fagbemi attributed this success to close inter-agency collaboration, including the Attorney General of the Federation, Federal Ministry of Justice, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Nigerian Police Force, Central Bank of Nigeria, Ministry of Petroleum Resources, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Department of State Security Service (DSS), and the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU).
The judge concluded that P&ID had obtained the award through severe abuses of the arbitral process and that the award had been obtained by fraud and contrary to public policy. The ruling also revealed that several agents of P&ID had made overtures for settlement last week, but Nigeria, under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu's administration, was determined not to condone corruption or fraud.
This significant judgment is viewed as a victory not only for Nigeria but also for countries facing similar challenges with corruption and fraud. The Federal Government's resolve not to settle with fraudulent counterparties has been reinforced by this outcome, marking a crucial milestone in the fight against corruption and a warning to predatory international investors.
