A former Minister of Power, Chief Liyel Imoke, has been unable to explain how a key Federal Executive Council (FEC) document used to challenge the Mambilla power project contract was approved, raising fresh questions about the records presented in the trial of former minister, Dr Olu Agunloye.
Imoke, who served as Minister of Power after Agunloye, told the Federal High Court in Abuja on Monday that he could not recall whether the FEC minutes of May 21, 2003, were formally examined and adopted by the council.
The document, admitted as Exhibit EFCC 3K, is important to the prosecution’s case against Agunloye over the award of the Mambilla Hydroelectric Power Project contract to Sunrise Power and Transmission Company.
The former minister had earlier told the court that he examined ministry records in August 2003 and found the minutes, which he said showed that the contract was not authorised by the FEC.
He said this informed his decision to write to Sunrise Power on September 3, 2003, describing the contract as null and void.
But during Monday’s proceedings, defence counsel, Adeola Adedipe, SAN, focused on whether the document had been properly adopted before it was treated as the official decision of the Federal Executive Council.
Imoke explained that FEC minutes are not automatically finalised after a meeting. According to him, they are circulated at the next meeting for members to review, correct and approve.
He said a motion for adoption must be moved and seconded before the minutes can officially stand as the council’s conclusions.
Asked whether he knew when the May 21, 2003 minutes went through this process, Imoke replied: “I have no knowledge of this.”
He also confirmed that the May 21 meeting was the final meeting of the 1999–2003 FEC before the administration was dissolved.
The next council meeting, he said, took place in August 2003 under the new administration, in which he served as Minister of Power.
The defence then sought to establish whether the disputed minutes were presented to either the outgoing or incoming council for adoption.
When pressed to identify which council approved the document, Imoke said: “I cannot recollect, I have to check the records.”
The exchange led to an objection from prosecution counsel, Abba Muhammed, SAN, who argued that the defence was repeating questions the witness had already answered.
Justice Jude Onwugbuezie initially cautioned the defence against prolonging the questioning but later allowed Adedipe to reframe his question.
The judge also made the court records available to Imoke so he could verify the information.
Proceedings were suspended for about 45 minutes to allow the witness to examine the documents.
However, when the court resumed, the prosecution requested an adjournment, saying Imoke needed more time to check the court records and other documents outside the courtroom.
The judge adjourned the case until November 19, 2026.
The latest development puts the spotlight on the status of Exhibit EFCC 3K, which Imoke previously identified as part of the evidence that informed his decision to challenge the Mambilla contract.
The trial is expected to continue with further examination of the document and the circumstances surrounding its adoption.
The Mambilla project has been the subject of years of contractual disputes and changes, eventually leading to international arbitration in France, where Nigeria secured a favourable outcome in September 2026.