 In a ruling delivered by e-mail, Robby knows the justice of the commercial cuts of England and Wales, upheld Nigeria's prayer on the ground that the ill-fated gas processing contract was obtained by fraud. The UK judge dismissed an earlier $6.6 billion US dollar abutrial judgment against Nigeria in favour of P&ID, in which interest has been increased to $11.5 billion over an alleged failed contract to develop a gas processing plan. George Knowles ruled that the awards were obtained by fraud and that what had transpired in the case were contrary to public policy, joining me to explain the case and the ruling is Barista Evans Oofely, constitutional lawyer. Barista Oofely, wakom. Would you want to summarily give our viewers the general, what generally happened in the case before you even tell us the specifics of this judgment today? Yes, what happened in that case is that the P&ID is a company that entered into a contract with the Nigerian government for the supply of gas in Calabar. One can say now that the fraudulently entered into a contract that actually existed. They entered into that contract for the purposes of building a gas plant, for which the federal government will supply the gas and the P&ID will process it based on certain terms and agreements. In the process of execution, parties on both sides had issues and factors that meditated against the success and the breakthrough of the contracts. Now because I followed this case deeply when they first got the abutrial award. Now, since the contract failed, the federal government did not take it seriously because it did not come to fruition. So because the arbitration clause in the agreement is that when there is a dispute, parties with objects, whatever dispute that they fall out of the agreement to arbitration, they went to that arbitration and because there was no follow-up from the side of the Nigerian government, they got an award of so much money then and there was a public outcry that certain persons in Nigeria contributed to why the case went the way it went and that these people now have these funds. In fact, they won't threaten Nigeria at that time that they will level the execution against our foreign reserves. Then we still have considerably foreign reserves. They wanted to level the execution against it before the Nigerian government took it up from where they left it off and went deeper. The major reason they gave at the arbitration which became a fraud was that the contract failed that the Nigerian government should pay them for the money that they would have made if the contract had succeeded. Forgetting that the factors that mutated against the success of the contract came from both sides. First, the gas plant was not completed and then they were expecting the Nigerian government to supply gas into an uncompleted gas plant. They did not come to the equity market with their hands. Anything short of that is fraud. And that is what the United States court have just made clear to the public. You mean the English Array court? Yes. These are two Irish guys. Now, the original person we initiated the contract was not even the persons who are standing now. It's their father. The children are the ones now pursuing this. But they forget that the contract was not consummated. It was an incubate contract that had fought on both the PRID side and the Nigerian side. The gas was never supplied. The plant was never completed due to caliber. The equity was the gas supply. Why the contribution or what they call consideration in contract of the PRID was to build the plant. Now the plant was not completed. The gas supply was not supplied. The contract broke down. The ruling today factors in the two sides inability to meet the obligations and rule that none of the two sides should be penalized. Very well because in contract where you have mutual deficiency, where you have different kinds of factors that are limited against contract, which we call mistake under the law. If I enter into a contract to supply you beans, for example, and we both agree but while the beans was in the vessel through the sea it got sunk, you understand both of us believe we are entered into a contract. But as at the time where they put in that contract, the subject matter of the contract has been consumed by the force of nature. In that case you cannot hold either side responsible. In some cases you have a mutual mistake where it is one person who believes that you are entered into a contract and the other person does not understand the fact in terms of that contract. In some cases you have mutual mistake where there is defective but the defections from both sides have contribution as to why the contract cannot be consummated. So in that case parties are supposed to be at their first. But they went on that arbitration journey and secured that award, that arbitrar award at the first time. Now thinking that they are going to, they even have commenced execution and our foreign reserve was threatened before they took the case up effectively for our government and they were assured that the true picture of what really transpired is not known to the world. Minister Feli, from the reports before today's judgment there have been times when some, the quality of representation that idea was said to have gotten was not quite up to par. Do you want to briefly illuminate that? Yes, because there was compromise. The first set of persons who represented Nigeria at the beginning when the Goddard first award, some of them were arrested by the International Crimes Commission and they made a confessional statement to the fact that they compromised the direction of their duties and that they collected gratification to foil the prospect of that case in favour of the advanced party. And that a lot of commuters will be that it is on record that the EFCC have a quantum of evidence and suspects who were later also tried criminally under our laws. Were these, just wanting to let my viewers get a picture were these Nigerians or foreigners representing Nigeria? No, they were not foreigners. At the risk of not calling names, some of them are people who know who have held positions in the federal level and at the state levels. Highly placed lawyers who have had Is there any form of sanction that the Nigerian Bar Association could visit on characters such as this? Of course, the Nigerian Bar Association will level that where there is a official petition to that effect. Stating that someone has breached the professional ethics and that should come with evidence to that effect. But for now I think it was the EFCC that investigated them and the fact that the EFCC investigated them or prosecuted them does not mean they cannot also go under a professional misconduct proceedings of the Nigerian Bar Association because either way, a crime was committed and the professional conduct was flouted. The normal professional for which we all pride ourselves today is one that is supposed to come with a lot of dignity and respect and patriotism. Okay, let me go further to probe you. This then naturally brings to mind the fact that are there mechanisms to vet the quality of representation Nigeria gets when people or professionals like yourself claim to be representing Nigeria and ultimately we get to be hearing stories of compromise. Are there mechanisms that the Ministry of Justice or in a young government has to kind of vet the quality of representation Nigeria gets in matters like this? Yes, the mechanism is the Ministry of Justice. The Ministry of Justice is added by the Attorney General of the Federation who will review cases, both cases we have within and cases we have both international and municipal cases. It is the responsibility because at the Chief Law Officer of the States Office oversees those functions. Even appointment of those who represent the country and issues like this and all that it is the responsibility of the Office of the Attorney General to so do. And that same office is also supervised by the presidency because the presidency also have a legal team that also advise the president apart from the Attorney General of the Federation. So that is how it is, there are mechanisms but what we should guide against in our countries that no matter how badly ruptured our economy is or how we are painted black all over the world one thing we must not do is to sabotage what is left of our country. We must as a matter of necessity protect our own. The courts over there have seen that truly these judgments was procured by fraud and under a judicial system which is a type of judicial system of the judgment without reducing one of the ways of obtaining and already procured judgment is where it is obtained by fraud. Where someone have misled the tribunal or the arbitration body or the courts into believing that the fact exists when such does not or that the particular issue was supposed to be the particular way it turned out to be false. Whatever enjoyment that springs out from there we will be regarded as a enjoyment that is procured by fraud and that is what has happened in the case of that reference. The arbitration couldn't have gone ahead so give room for the PRID to have a fist of that award when the under correct issue that gave back to that award have issues of fraud and fraudulent activities on the net. Then it would be a big blow to the court itself the judge that award seemed and to the Dajna community at large and that is why it went this way. Thank you very much for the enlightenment we really appreciate the fact that you've given us the quality illumination to matters such as this we wish Nigeria could be a bit more a bit more stringent in the way it manages actions especially actions taken against Nigeria because for a while we thought 11.5 billion dollars in these hard times would have to be Thank you very much Thank you Baistar You are welcome Thank you All the history of Koko in Nigeria and mainland West Africa should challenge each of us to drive the revamping of our dwindling national fortune. My friends and business partners with whom I value idea often wonder why usually all the somewhat pessimistic opinion of the government being able to sustainably solve the twin problems of one endemic poverty and two the misplaced belief by the majority of our compatriots that the government instead of a culture of value innovation and resilient productiveness can eradicate poverty in our society the throwbacks series on Koko that is how it came to our shores from the diaspora our corporation democratized its wealth creation opportunity to the interland of Yoruba land and how it became the highest source of revenue for the richest regional government our administration in Pluriniti 66 Nigeria this whole week will help to showcase how a nation grows from the collective wealth of the productive and philanthropic citizens the diaspora come to me and go James Pearson Labula Davis JPL Davis James Pearson Labula Davis was born to James and Charlotte Davis in the village of Brafos, Syria alone then a British colony his parents were clear of receptive the captive Yoruba that brought by the British West African squadron from the Atlantic slave traders whose origins were in Abo, Kuta and Obo Mosho respectively Davis entered the church missionary society CMS grammar school now known as Syria non grammar school after completing a secondary education he became a teacher with the CMS in Futhown he later enlisted as a cadet with the British Royal Navy's West African squadron and served on HMS Vocalo under commander of the Kuta where he was trained in navigation and seamanship Davis progressed from cadet to midship man and eventually left herment Davis was a lieutenant aboard HMS Bloodhound during the bombardment of niggers under the command of commander woman and commander Henry William Bruce in 1851 in which Obo Kosoko was ousted resulting in the ascension of Obo Kuta during the bombardment the British Navy reportedly lost two officers and 10 men were wounded Lieutenant David was among the wounded he retired from the Navy in 1852 and offered his services as a merchant vessel captain traversing the West African coast he eventually settled in niggers in 1856 where he became known as captain J.P.L. Davis Davis is credited with pioneering Kokofarmen in West Africa after obtaining the Kokositz from Brazilian ship and also from the island of Anandupo in 1879 and 1880 Davis subsequently established a post plus Kokofarmen in Lijon near the Adryon River just outside the then colony of niggers now on the border of niggers and Ogun states Davis also helped spread Kokofarmen knowledge through J.C.P.K.Koka whose profile will treat tomorrow in AP 1916 the general of African society credited a native of Makra with introducing Kokofarmen in West Africa but justice W.B. Griffiths the colonial justice of the gold coast present day Ghana and a former late 19th century administrative headquarters of the colony and the protectorates which became Nigeria in 1914 issued a rebutter in the 20 June 1916 edition creating his father Sarah Brantford Griffiths the British governor of the gold coast from 1885 to 1895 with pioneering Kokofarmen in the gold coast noting that Davis predated his father as the Kokofarmenia in West Africa justice Griffiths road as far as I am aware the first person to plant Kokositz the mainland west Africa was the late Captain J.P.L. Davis a well-known native of Lagos who in 1882 used to tell me about the farm he had lately just made beyond the protectorate seat of Lagos Davis was also a close associate and friend of Bishop Samuel Agai Crowder both men collaborated on a couple of Lagos social initiatives such as the opening of the academy a social and cultural center for public enlightenment on 24 October 1866 with Bishop Crowder as the first patron and Davis as its first president in 1859 Davis provided Reverend Thomas Barbintin McCauley the father of the famous nationalist about McCauley with the seed funding to establish CMS Grammar School Lagos 50 pounds about 5 million Naira today to buy books and equipment with the seed funds Barbintin McCauley opened CMS Grammar School on 6th of June 1859 in 1867 Davis contributed another 100 pounds about 10 million Naira today toward a CMS Grammar School building fund other contributors to the CMS building fund were non-Saharan such as Taiwo Onoho who contributed 50 pounds Saharo contributors also included men such as Moses Johnson IH Willoughby TF Cole James George and Charles Forseth who contributed 40 pounds Captain Davis died at his Lagos home on 29th of August 1906 and was buried at a gender symmetry in Lagos on the 30th of August 1906 in conclusion Ather as a diasporian written in or just simply a value innovating entrepreneur what will be your entrepreneur and all philanthropic legacy as the pioneering of coco plantation the homeland of the west coast of Africa and CMS Grammar School are some of JPL Davis's one ninety years after his death and that's it on the show tonight I am Gola Oba