Amosun: Chinese Firm Dispute is Between Two Chinese Companies, Like P&ID Scam

. Says Zhongfu lied against China Africa Investment FXE

. Insists his govt acted based on request of Chinese govt

. I am ready to provide documents to assist FG, says Gbenga Daniel

Ejiofor Alike in Lagos and Sunday Aborisade in Abuja

A former Governor of Ogun State, Senator Ibikunle Amosun, has clarified the circumstances surrounding the termination of the management rights of Zhongfu International Investment FXE over the Ogun Guangdong Free Trade Zone (OGFTZ) on May 27, 2016, and the recent seizure of Nigeria’s presidential jets in Paris, saying that the dispute is between two Chinese companies.

This is just as Amosun’s predecessor, Senator Gbenga Daniel, has expressed his readiness to provide relevant documents that would assist the Nigerian government in the dispute.

The presidential jets, which were undergoing routine maintenance, were seized following ex parte orders issued by a court in Paris, France.

The seizure came after litigations were initiated by the Chinese company against the federal government and the Ogun State Government due to the termination of the contractual agreement.

An arbitral tribunal subsequently awarded Zhongshan Fucheng Industrial Investment Co Limited about $74.5million in compensation, but the state government did not honour the ruling.

Following the arbitration judgment in favour of Zhongshan Fucheng Industrial Investment Co Limited, the court ruled that the judgment creditor could attach any of Nigeria’s assets abroad in payment of the judgment debt.

Consequently, Zhongfu seized three presidential aircraft that were in Paris for maintenance but later released one of the aircraft, an Airbus A380, recently acquired to replace former Air Force One.

In a statement issued yesterday, Amosun, who was the governor of the state from 2011 to 2019, said his administration terminated the management rights of Zhongfu based on the request of the Chinese Government and advice from the Department of State Services (DSS), and the Nigeria Export Processing Zones Authority (NEPZA).

Amosun, who described Zhongfu as an imposter, disclosed that the agreement that was entered into at the inception of the OGFTZ in 2007 with his predecessor is still in operation, adding that there was no need for any negotiation or re-negotiation of any contract when he assumed office on May 29, 2011, and throughout his eight years tenure.  

The former senator for Ogun Central stated that shortly after his administration assumed office, two Chinese companies, Messrs China Africa Investment FXE and Zhongfu International Investment FXE laid claims to the management rights over OGFTZ.

He explained that the business dispute and rivalry between the two companies grounded seamless business activities and threatened public peace and safety within the zone and the neighbouring communities.

According to him, “Zhongfu, pretending to be a concerned and genuine tenant and zone stakeholder, had volunteered very damaging and destructive information about the official representatives of Guangdong Province, the joint venturer and lawful zone managers, China Africa Investment FXE and subsequently requested to be appointed as Interim Zone Manager.”

He said based on the information at the disposal of his government at the time, Zhongfu International Investment FXE was appointed as Interim Zone Manager on March 15, 2012, pending further evaluation.

The ex-governor noted that it was later discovered that the information and claims volunteered by Zhongfu against China Africa Investment FXE were lies.

“Unknown to Ogun State Government at the time, Zhongfu International Investment FXE merely sought to de-market China Africa Investment FXE and to surreptitiously covert the state-owned assets of Guangdong Province in China together with the Zone ownership and management rights of their business rival,” Amosun explained.

According to the ex-governor, “the Government of the People’s Republic of China, via its Diplomatic Note 1601 dated 1 March 11, 2016, clarified to the Ogun State Government, that China Africa Investment FXE was the rightful investor. After due consultation with the relevant organs of Government, we gave effect to the request of the Chinese Government.”

He said his government also consulted and took advice from the State Security Services (Department of State Services) and the supervising Agency, NEPZA, on the best way to proceed, adding that ZhongFu was served with a formal termination notice dated May 27, 2016.

Amosun recalled that Zhongfu International Investment FXE approached Nigerian courts in different jurisdictions to ventilate its legal and business rights and lost all four cases in court.

He listed some of the court cases involving the two Chinese companies to include: Suit No HCT/417/2016 between Zhongfu International Investment FXE Vs OGFTZ and, Suit No. FCT/ABJ/CS/601/2016 between Zhongfu International Investment FXE Vs NEPZA & Ors, which he said were all business disputes between the two Chinese entities.

Amosun noted that the final judgment in one other case: Suit No AB/04/2017 between Zenith Global Merchant International Investment Ltd Vs Zhongfu International Investment FXE, which was delivered on March 29, 2017, specifically restrained a reference to arbitration in the special circumstances of the matter being a trade dispute between two Chinese entities, which he said had little or no connection with either Ogun State or the federal government.

The ex-governor added that Zhongfu wrote petitions to the Presidency, Minister of Trade & Investment; Attorney General and Minister of Justice; Inspector General of Police; EFCC, and the National Assembly and lost those petitions.

“We successfully defended our actions at all levels before these organs of government, and they all agreed with our position. Shortly after, our administration left office in May 2019,” he added.

He debunked the allegation that his administration sent policemen to harass, intimidate, or beat the officials of any company.

Zhongshan had in its statement of claim to the French court, alleged that its personnel, including the Chief Financial Officer of Zhongfu Nigeria Limited. (a subsidiary of Zhongshan), Mr. Wenxiao Zhao, suffered verbal and physical assault by the police, acting on orders from the state government.

But Amosun denied the allegation, saying “If there was any such situation, it must have been from among the disputing rivals in the bid to outdo one another. Security agencies can further investigate the allegation and uphold the truth.”

He urged the Nigerian government not to give Zhongfu any listening ear, adding that doing so would amount to indulging and encouraging an unlawful entity without locus standi to appropriate the country’s common patrimony.

Amosun, who said he aligned with the very appropriate responses from the Ogun State Government and the federal government, also recommended that Zhongfu should be treated the way Nigeria treated the P&ID case, insisting that there is no basis for negotiation.

“I am ready to work with the agencies of government in any capacity to ensure that Nigeria is not scammed by Zhongfu International Investment FXE or any other entity.

“Like every Nigerian, we are concerned that a purely business dispute between two Chinese nationals and corporations has now degenerated into an unlawful attempt to appropriate Nigeria’s sovereign assets.

“This is unacceptable to all people of goodwill and must not be allowed to stand,” Amosun added.

I am Ready to Provide Documents to Assist FG, Says Gbenga Daniel

In a related development, Amosun’s predecessor, Senator Daniel has expressed his readiness to provide relevant documents that would assist the Nigerian government in navigating the legal conundrum.

Daniel, who said this in a statement made available to journalists in Abeokuta, Ogun State capital, noted that it would be useless to go on the pages of newspapers to discuss the nitty-gritty of the matter involving his administration at the time and Zhongshan Fucheng Industrial Investment Co Limited.

The statement noted that the issue in contention was not the terms or proprietary of the agreement for the establishment of the FTZ by Daniel’s administration, but rather the termination of a management contract, adding that the judgments in all the courts were very clear on it.

According to the statement, Daniel as governor was able to bring about several developmental projects including the establishment of the OGFTZ and others.

It noted that as a serving Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Daniel would thread a patriotic path by helping to find “a diplomatic solution to the issue at hand with available records that could assist the federal government in pursuing its course at the arbitration and before the courts.”

“He cannot do this on the pages of the newspapers and on other media which may also compromise the strength of Nigeria’s arguments in the courts. We need to also appreciate that this matter is before various courts in several countries and it is subjudice for anyone to speak on them,” the statement added.