In daring detail, 'OPL 245: The inside story of the $1.3bn Nigerian oil block' tells the uncensored story of the billion-dollar deal between Shell plc, Eni S.p.A. and Malabu Oil & Gas Ltd of Nigeria that went awry.
The deal attracted global attention over allegations of fraud and bribery and was investigated by American, British, Dutch and Italian authorities. But as the world watched what was touted by UK-based campaigners as "the biggest corporate scandal trial in history", every piece started falling apart, with an Italian Court concluding that there was no fraud. A UK court ruled likewise in a civil case. This is a story of dirty intrigue, high-wire politics, vendetta and Machiavellian tactics.
CONTENTS:
PREFACE
BLOODIED BUT UNBOWED
PART
I INTRIGUE AND VENDETTA
1.
The Birth of OPL 245 page 17
2.
The Revocation page 21
3.
The Resolution page 28
4.
The Twists page 37
5.
Obasanjo: Clever by Half page 42
PART
II A DEN OF DEFAMERS
6.
Abacha and Buhari Reunited page 55
7.
The Grand Conspiracy page
60
8.
The Ruthless Enforcer page 64
9.
The Conflicted Coordinator page 76
10.
The False Witness page 81
11.
The Blind Alley page 96
12.
A Headless Mob page 103
13.
The Italian Jobber page 109
PART
III HARASSED AND EMBARRASSED
14.
Arrested on Arrival page 121
15.
Chained and Detained page 128
16.
Behind Bars page 133
17.
Back to Base page 139
18.
Inside EFCCs Custody page 143
PART
IV TRIALS AND TRIUMPHS
19.
Vindicated: The U.S. Inquisition page 156
20.
Vindicated: The Italian Court Judgment page
160
21.
Vindicated: The U.K. Court Decision page
174
22.
Relieved: Pronouncements in Nigeria page
201
23.
Discharged and Acquitted:
The
F.C.T. High Court Verdict page 204
24.
Discharged and Acquitted:
The
Federal High Court Verdict page 227
PART
V REFLECTIONS AND RECOLLECTIONS
25.
War against Corruption page 247
26.
The Hard Lessons page 253
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS page 266
INDEX page 267
Mohammed Bello Adoke was the Nigerian attorney-general from 2010 to 2015. He was educated at the Ahmadu Bello University in Nigeria, the Robert Kennedy University, Switzerland, the University of Nottingham, the UK, and the University of Leiden, the Netherlands. He is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, England. He was a member of the prestigious International Law Commission from 2010 to 2017. Adoke is married to Sa'adatu, a lawyer, and they have six children.
