Dr. Olu Agunloye, former Minister of Power and Steel, has accused the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) of deliberately damaging his reputation over allegations linked to the controversial Mambilla Power Project. During a court session in Abuja, Agunloye told Justice Peter Kekemeke that the EFCC had falsely implicated him in a $6 billion fraud, and he is demanding a retraction, public apology, and ₦1 billion in damages.
The case stems from an online publication by the EFCC, in which the anti-graft agency alleged that Agunloye had been charged in connection with a multibillion-dollar fraud related to the Mambilla hydroelectric project. Represented by his counsel, Adeola Adedipe, the former minister insisted that the claims are baseless, misleading, and have seriously tarnished his public image.
Agunloye, while being cross-examined by EFCC counsel Dr. Wahab Shittu, maintained that the allegations portrayed him as someone who awarded a major contract without due process and accepted bribes, charges he vehemently denied. According to him, the 2003 version of the Mambilla project, which he managed during President Olusegun Obasanjo’s administration, incurred no financial burden on the Nigerian government. He insisted the project was conceptualized and executed transparently and with proper approval.
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He told the court that the EFCC’s statements falsely connect him to an international arbitration dispute involving a contract awarded in 2017, over a decade after his tenure ended. Agunloye emphasized that his involvement in the earlier version of the Mambilla project has nothing to do with the controversial 2017 contract that the Federal Government is currently challenging.
“The EFCC has created a false narrative that I was involved in awarding a contract that eventually led to the current legal disputes. That is completely untrue,” he told the court. “They are twisting facts to destroy my reputation.”
Agunloye further accused the EFCC of misleading the public by suggesting criminal conduct where none existed, insisting that their claims were not only defamatory but also politically damaging. He is now seeking a judicial declaration that the EFCC’s publication was false and malicious, along with an official retraction, apology, and financial compensation for the reputational damage he believes he has suffered.
Justice Kekemeke has adjourned the matter to October 30, 2025, when the EFCC is expected to open its defense after the completion of Agunloye’s submissions.
