Zhongshan, the Chinese firm involved in a legal dispute with Ogun State has released one of the three presidential jets initially seized.
LEADERSHIP reports that the aircraft, an Airbus A330, was detained in France following a French court order obtained by Zhongshan.
The firm cited the necessity for the Nigerian President to use the jet for an upcoming meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron as the reason for the release.
“Zhongshan has consistently sought to act reasonably and fairly in the course of a legal dispute with Nigeria which was not of its making,” a spokesperson for the company stated on Friday.
The spokesperson emphasised that the decision to release the jet was a gesture of goodwill to facilitate the President’s travel plans.
The release of the aircraft came amid ongoing negotiations between Zhongshan and the Federal Government to resolve the broader dispute.
“Zhongshan remains committed to talks with representatives of the Federal Government of Nigeria, this time serious and substantive on both sides, with a view to reaching a reasonable compromise settlement rapidly,” the spokesperson added.
Despite this development, the company did not provide details on when the two remaining aircraft currently detained will be released.
The legal tussle between Zhongshan and the Federal Government stem from a protracted disagreement over the management of the Ogun Guangdong Free Trade Zone (OGFTZ) in Ogun State.
The dispute escalated in March 2021 when an arbitral tribunal awarded Zhongshan $55.7 million, along with an interest of $9.4 million and costs amounting to £2.86 million, following an investment treaty arbitration.
This arbitration was based on a bilateral investment treaty between China and Nigeria.
The Federal Government, alongside Ogun State, has been attempting to resolve the matter but has so far been unsuccessful.
Reacting to the situation, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Mr. Bayo Onanuga described the French court’s order as an “arm-twisting tactic by a Chinese company.”
Onanuga further accused Zhongshan of misleading the French court, saying, “The company withheld vital information and misled the court in Paris into attaching the Nigerian government’s presidential jets.”
He noted that the aircraft were in France for routine maintenance when the court order was issued.
LEADERSHIP recalls that the dispute is traced back to a 2010 agreement between Zhuhai Zhongfu Industrial Group Co Ltd, Zhongshan’s parent company, and the Ogun Guangdong Free Trade Zone to establish Fucheng Industrial Park within the zone.
However, in 2016, Zhongfu alleged that the Ogun State government moved to terminate its management of the zone, leading to the arbitration and subsequent court order.
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