$9.6bn judgment debt FG fight back as Court orders forfeiture of P&ID’s assets

The Federal High Court, Abuja on Thursday ordered the forfeiture of assets belonging to Process & Industrial Development Limited (P&ID)virgin Island and its Nigeria associate -Process & Industrial Development Nigeria Limited  to the federal government.

Justice Inyang Ekwo gave the order of forfeiture following the conviction of the firms on an 11 count charge bordering on economic sabotage, money laundering, tax evasion amongst others proffered against them by the federal government.At the arraignment on Thursday, the parent company -P&ID Ltd, incorporated in the British Virgin Island was represented by its Commercial Director, Mohammad Kuchazi, while P&ID Nigeria Limited was represented by Adamu Usman.

The defendants pleaded guilty to all the 11 counts charge against them and the court consequently convicted them based on their plea of guilt.
After their conviction, counsel to the first defendant, Dandison Akurunwa, in his plea for mercy , prayed the court to take into account the cooperative antecedent of the first defendant who did not waste the time of the court in  admitting their guilt in the charge.
Adamu Usman the representative of the  second defendant, who represented himself  in court  aligned himself with the submission of counsel to the first defendant.
On his part, the prosecution counsel, Bala Sanga urged the court to deliver its sentencing in line with the provision of the Money Laundering Act which stipulates the winding up of the firm as well as forfeiture of all their assets to the federal government.
Justice Ekwo in his sentencing made an order winding up the two firms as well as forfeiture of their assets to the federal government.
The dispute between the P&ID and the Federal Government over a controversial Gas processing supply agreement degenerated in June with a British Commercial Court awarding the sum of $9.6bn against Nigeria for the failed contract in 2010 between P &ID and the Ministry of Petroleum Resources.
The British court also granted P&ID order to seize Nigeria’s foreign assets to the tune of $9.6billion  judgment debt in its favour.
But the federal government on its part have maintained that the entire Gas Supply and Processing Agreement signed between Nigeria’s Ministry of Petroleum and P&ID in 2010 was deliberately skewered to fail so as to benefit a syndicate that was out to extort Nigeria of its resources.
P&ID had in 2012 instituted the legal battle against Nigeria in the Court of Arbitration in the UK in 2012, following Nigeria’s refusal to carry on with the GSPA agreement entered with the firm in 2010.The federal government has since discovered that the P&ID Gas processing supply agreement was shrewd in fraud and has began to prosecute the alleged suspects for the alleged crimes.