The Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), announced that his office, along with the National Security Adviser, has initiated legal and diplomatic efforts to recover three Nigerian presidential aircraft seized in France due to a fine imposed on Ogun State.
This information was disclosed in a statement by the Special Adviser to the President on Communication and Publicity, Office of the AGF, Kamarudeen Ogundele, on Thursday in Abuja.
“The Offices of the National Security Adviser and the Attorney-General of the Federation have already taken legal and diplomatic steps to overturn the inappropriate orders against the aircraft, which are protected by sovereign immunity.
“While further actions are being pursued to resolve the dispute through available legal channels, the Federal Government maintains that the aircraft in question are sovereign assets used solely for sovereign purposes and, therefore, immune from attachment as attempted by Zhongshan,” the statement read.
Previously, a French court authorized the seizure of three Nigerian presidential jets. Two of the jets are part of Nigeria’s presidential air fleet that was recently put up for sale, while the third is an Airbus 330 that Nigeria purchased but has yet to receive.
The seized jets include a Dassault Falcon 7X at Le Bourget airport in Paris, a Boeing 737, and an Airbus 330 at Basel-Mulhouse airport in Switzerland, all of which are currently undergoing maintenance.
The Nigerian government reportedly paid over $100 million for the Airbus.
The jets were seized following a legal action by Zhongshan, a Chinese company whose export processing zone management contract was revoked by the Ogun State government in 2016. Zhongshan took the Ogun State government to court, and an independent arbitral tribunal, chaired by a former UK Supreme Court President, awarded Zhongshan approximately $74.5 million in compensation, which Ogun State has yet to pay.
The court order prohibits Nigeria from moving or selling the presidential jets until the $74.5 million owed to Zhongshan by Ogun State is paid.
, announced that his office, along with the National Security Adviser, has initiated legal and diplomatic efforts to recover three Nigerian presidential aircraft seized in France due to a fine imposed on Ogun State.){kind=link}