APC Urges Atiku to Quit Presidential Race Over Mambilla Project

By Adebola Muili

The All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council has urged the African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, to withdraw from the 2027 presidential race over allegations surrounding the stalled 3,960-megawatt Mambilla Hydroelectric Power Project in Taraba State.

The council made the call in a statement issued on Friday, September 18, 2026, by its spokesman, Dele Alake, accusing the former Vice-President of compromising Nigeria’s interests in the handling of the controversial power project.

According to the council, Atiku and former Minister of Power, Olu Agunloye, worked together to facilitate the signing of a Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) contract with Sunrise Power and Transmission Company Limited for the Mambilla project.

The council alleged that the contract was signed in the final days of former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s first term despite objections and reservations expressed by the then President at a Federal Executive Council meeting.

It further alleged that months before the contract was awarded, Leno Adesanya, through an offshore company identified as China Castle Investment, transferred $500,000 in tranches to the United States Citibank account of Jennifer Douglas, Atiku’s then wife.

The council said the payment and other suspicious transfers totalling $40 million featured in a United States Senate investigation into Atiku and other individuals accused of corruption.

It also cited proceedings before the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) arbitration tribunal in Paris, which, according to the council, established a connection between the payment and the subsequent award of the Mambilla contract to Sunrise.

The statement quoted the tribunal as saying: “There is a close connection in time between the moment the USD 500,000 payment was made to the wife of Vice-President Abubakar on 30 January 2003 and the alleged award of the BOT contract to Sunrise on 22 May 2003.”

The APC council said the controversy surrounding the contract subsequently exposed Nigeria to claims by Sunrise and Adesanya, including a demand for $680 million in settlement and interest, as well as a separate claim exceeding $2.7 billion in compensation and interest over disputes associated with the Mambilla project.

The council also criticised Atiku for allegedly failing to appear at the Paris proceedings to give evidence, contrasting his absence with the appearance of former Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo and Muhammadu Buhari, who it said defended Nigeria’s position.

It further referred to allegations contained in Obasanjo’s memoir, My Watch, concerning Atiku’s alleged corruption, lack of transparency and prioritisation of personal interests over national interest.

The APC campaign council consequently called on Atiku to “do himself a rare honour by bowing out of the presidential race,” alleging that the $500,000 payment was only the beginning of further revelations concerning his conduct.

The council also urged residents of Taraba State to take note of what it described as Atiku’s alleged role in the stalled Mambilla project, which it said could have become Nigeria’s biggest hydropower project, with significant economic benefits for the state.