By Yinka Giwa
Former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mohammed Bello Adoke, SAN, has welcomed the Federal Government’s decision to finally implement the OPL 245 Resolution Agreements, nearly 15 years after the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan moved to settle the long-running disputes surrounding the oil block.
Adoke said the development validates the efforts made by the Jonathan administration to resolve the complex disagreements between the parties involved and place the oil-rich asset on the path to productivity.
He commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for bringing the long-standing issue to a close, describing the move as a demonstration of statesmanship and a clear understanding of the importance of the oil sector to Nigeria’s economic growth.
According to him, the decision shows that the current administration recognises the strategic value of the asset and the need to unlock its potential in the national interest.
Adoke, however, said the resolution also exposes what he described as the unjust actions of the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari, which he accused of criminalising and scandalising the efforts made to resolve the dispute.
He argued that the controversies that trailed the agreement were largely the result of the earlier unilateral revocation of the oil block by former President Olusegun Obasanjo in 2002, a move he said triggered years of litigation and stalled development of the asset.
The former justice minister lamented that despite working in the national interest to resolve the matter, he was subjected to years of humiliation, prosecution, and public attacks both within and outside Nigeria.
“It is most unfortunate that I was subjected to humiliation and defamation at home and abroad for the patriotic role I played as Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice in resolving the dispute to get this vital national asset working,” he said.
Adoke maintained that if the Buhari administration and what he described as “trophy-hunting anti-corruption activists” had not interfered with the process, Nigeria’s economy would have benefitted significantly from the early development of the oil block.
“If the Buhari administration and the trophy-hunting anti-corruption activists had not dragged the country backwards with their uninformed intervention, the Nigerian economy would have been far better off today,” he said.
He insisted that the ordeal he faced for nearly a decade as a result of the controversy warrants an apology from the Federal Government.
“I strongly believe that I deserve an unreserved apology from the Federal Government for the persecution and humiliation I was subjected to for nine years and the scar I still bear in my body simply because I advised the Goodluck Jonathan administration to do the right thing on the oil block,” he said.
Despite the experience, Adoke said he has chosen to forgive those he believes were involved in damaging his reputation.
“Nevertheless, I forgive all those who connived to smear my name across the world. I take it as part of the burden of service to my fatherland. I remain steadfast and unshaken in my belief in Nigeria,” he said.