When oil magnate and Chairman of energy conglomerate, Aiteo, Benedict Peters promised to hit back at his detractors following the myriads of malicious, unfounded and false allegations targeted at tarnishing his image, nobody saw it coming like a whirlwind. However, with the series of court victories he now has in his pockets, the energy boss is not just making the news, he is also beginning to set the records straight about his life and business.
Recently, a High Court sitting at Federal Capital Territory Abuja, nullified Economic and Financial Crimes Commission’s (EFCC) labelling of the businessman as a ‘wanted’ person. The judgement delivered by Justice Othman Musa stated that the anti-graft agency has no right to declare Peters as a ‘wanted’ person without any court order.
Peters who questioned EFCC’s right to declare him wanted on several occasions since 15th August 2016, based his argument on the fact that he has “never been charged with, nor tried for any criminal offence in any Court of law, nor has he ever jumped bail for any offence howsoever in Nigeria and cannot be declared wanted by administrative fiat, without any prior order or leave of Court.”
In his favour, the court ruled that the very act of declaring him wanted on the official website of the EFCC without court order is “unlawful, illegal, wrongful, ultra vires, unconstitutional and constitutes a flagrant violation of the Fundamental rights of the Applicant to personal liberty, private and family life, freedom of movement and Right to not to be subjected to inhuman treatment and degrading treatment as guaranteed under Section 34, 37, 41 and 46 of the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria”.
Benedict Peters’ string of victories in court has proven that when it comes to getting justice in Nigeria, one has to be resolute and strong-willed. In a 21st century country with functional courts, the legal mantra ‘innocent until proven guilty’ seem to have taken a reverse form, as an accused is never entitled to due process of law before suffering disgrace at the hands of the media, or as in the case above, an anti-graft agency. As a man, who broke through in the oil and gas business, exhibiting the same level of doggedness, Peters decision to lock horns with his decriers is quite justified.
In October 2017, while announcing that he has hired highly reputed law firms to clear his name, Peters lamented that the unfounded allegations have caused untold disruption to his family and business. He also described them as politically-motivated witch-hunts that stains reputations and stifles enterprise in Nigeria.
Peters has also stated on several occasions that his interactions with the past government, especially with the former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Madueke, were in accordance with acceptable corporate practice in Nigeria and not in return for contracts in the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation as perpetuated by his attackers.
According to him, his company, Aiteo was a major player in the oil and gas industry long before Alison-Madueke was appointed as Minister for Petroleum Resources.
In a previous case, Peters was accused of allegedly paying a bribe of $115million to electoral officers to influence the outcome of the 2015 presidential election. This allegation was thrown out of court. The judge ruled that Peters did not violate the Electoral Act following donations he made to political parties during 2015 general elections.
In December 2017, a suit was filed against Peters, challenging the provenance and legality of the ownership of assets and properties belonging to the Aiteo boss. In response to this allegation, Peters produced evidence to demonstrate his sound business practices over the past 25 years in the oil and gas industry, as well as evidence from financial institutions for funding raised over several years which allowed him to invest and conduct business that resulted in the considerable success of Aiteo Group. Similarly, the court found that on said evidence produced in the court, the earnings and assets accruing to the oil magnate were acquired legally through legitimate sources.
Benedict Peters is a visionary, with high hopes for Africa as an energy leader and an unmatched passion for the development of the continent’s teeming youth population. While he stays winning in court, his company Aiteo Group also leads in Nigeria’s energy sector. In a little over a year, Aiteo ramped up crude production to 90,000 bpd from an average production of 23,000 bpd after acquiring OML 29 for $2.8 billion from Shell at a time when local oil companies struggled to manage divested assets. He has been described as Nigeria’s local content patriot for this feat.
Peters interventions in promoting the country’s football body, which saw him invest N2.5 billion in resuscitating to country’s league and national team respectively, has also resulted in big wins, the most notable being Super Eagles’ Russia 2018 World Cup ticket.
On his latest court win, he says, “this ruling is an important next step in the legal process to clear my name…. I look forward to once again focussing all my efforts on growing our business and supporting sports development in Nigeria and across Africa, such as the CAF Awards, the Nigerian national football team and the Federation Cup.”
Ajayi Abegunde writes from Lagos, Nigeria.
