Former Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Usman Sarki, believes diplomatic action is the only option to put an end to the seizure of Nigerian assets abroad by the Chinese company Zhongshan Fucheng Industrial Investment Co. Limited.
Sarki encouraged President Bola Tinubu to meet with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, as soon as possible to address the dispute between the Federal Government of Nigeria and the Chinese business.
“His Excellency, President Bola Tinubu is going to China in September, hopefully, for the China-Africa Summit,” the diplomat said on Inside Sources with Laolu Akande, a sociopolitical programme aired on Channels Television on Friday.
“I think he should have a bilateral meeting with his counterpart, Xi Jinping, to discuss this matter and see if it will be resolved amicably.
“Also, possibly, they may meet on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in September in New York.”
Before then, Sarki suggested that the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, exchange notes with the Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, and meet with the Chinese ambassador in Nigeria to de-escalate the situation and put an end to the “embarrassing” seizures.
A French court recently decided in favor of the corporation, ordering the seizure of presidential airplanes belonging to the Nigerian government.
In a disagreement over an arbitration ruling, a Paris court decided in favor of the Chinese firm, allowing it to seize three presidential airplanes undergoing normal maintenance in France as “security” for claims in a decades-long judicial case between the foreign company and the Ogun State government.
However, the Presidency said that the Chinese corporation is attempting “to take over offshore assets of the Federal Government of Nigeria through subterfuge”. Fagbemi later stated that diplomatic and legal measures were underway to resolve the problem peacefully.
Meanwhile, the firm has reportedly taken other assets pursuant to court rulings.
