After a few days of agony and embarrassment, Chinese firm, Zhongshan Fucheng Industrial Investment Co. Ltd has released one of the three Nigerian Airbus A330 aircraft detained in France for the upcoming trip of the Nigerian president, Bola Tinubu.
The company said it has done so “out of goodwill” and not obligation, as it maintained its tough stance against Nigeria following its success in both the French and US courts over contractual breaches.
NewsNGR reports that following a court order obtained from a Paris judicial court, two Nigerian presidential jets – two in Switzerland including a newly acquired one for $100m and one in France, which is being refurbished – were seized over contract stand-off between the company and Ogun State in Nigeria.
Nigeria which was joined in the court case in Paris as a co-defendant acted as a sovereign guarantor to Ogun State.
A statement from the company on Friday even as Nigeria insists the French court was misled said it has been informed the aircraft being detained in France is needed by the Nigerian president for his trip to France.
Tinubu is scheduled to travel to France for a meeting with the French President Emmanuel Macron in the coming days.
The company spokesperson said, “Zhongshan has consistently acted reasonably and fairly in a legal dispute with Nigeria, which it did not initiate.
“The company has been informed that an Airbus A330, currently detained in France due to a French court order obtained by Zhongshan, is needed by the President of Nigeria for his upcoming meeting with President Macron next week.
“As a goodwill gesture, Zhongshan has lifted the seizure, allowing the aircraft to be used for the President’s trip,” the company.
The company said its doors are open for further negotiation with the Nigerian government, with hopes of reaching a “reasonable compromise swiftly.”
The Nigerian government has said it has initiated legal steps to address “embarrassment”.
The Special Adviser to the President on Communication and Publicity at the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Kamarudeen Ogundele, said the Offices of the National Security Adviser and Attorney-General of the Federation are pursuing both legal and diplomatic measures to secure the release of the aircraft.
This was as he insisted aircraft are sovereign assets, used exclusively for sovereign purposes, and are therefore immune from attachment.
Zhongshan reiterated in the statement that it “has only sought to assert its rights under international law and remains confident in its case.
“The independent arbitral panel found unanimously in our favour, and courts in several countries have affirmed the panel’s award of compensation,” referring to the courts in the United Kingdom and the US.
It stressed that the “the French court had all the relevant facts when it made its decision.”