The
House of Representatives on Wednesday threatened to declare the contractors
that executed the rehabilitation and modernisation projects of the Nigerian
Railway Corporation wanted for failing to honour its invitations.
An
ad hoc committee of the House, chaired by a member representing Edo State, Mr.
Johnson Agbonayinma, is investigating the contracts, covering the period
between 2010 and 2014.
The
Federal Government reportedly spent over N1tn on railway contracts with
additional funding from the now-rested Subsidy Re-Investment and Empowerment
Programme during the period under review.
However,
the House had observed that the execution of the rail projects was not
commensurate with the “huge public funds expended by the NRC.”
The
committee, which grilled the Managing Director of the NRC, Mr. Seyi Sjuwade, on
Tuesday, expressed its frustration on Wednesday over the refusal of the
contractors to honour its invitations.
Agbonayinma
disclosed that apart from a Chinese firm, China Civil Engineering Construction
Company, other contractors had failed to respond to the committee’s
invitations.
He
added, “All the letters we sent out to their addresses were returned; we have
not heard anything from them.
“The
phone numbers attached to the addresses, we cannot reach; they are nowhere to
be found. Are they faceless?
“Apart
from CCECC, the contractors have been avoiding us. We shall hold the MD of the
NRC (Sjuwade) responsible for this; to bring them.
“We
are using this opportunity to invite them again; they must come to explain
their roles in the contracts they executed. The Constitution of the Federal
Republic of Nigeria is very clear on what the legislature can do in situations
such as this.”
The
committee said one of the firms, Constain West Africa, won a N12.2bn contract
for the Jebba-Kano line.
The
job had a duration of 10 months, but members observed that it took “years”
before it was delivered.
Sijuwade,
however, defended the firm, saying the contractors “successfully” completed the
project.
They
claimed not to have further links with the company.
“They
have long completed their work and packed out of the country. I don’t know
where they are, I cannot reach them.
“I
will say that the committee should use all that is within its powers to invite
them here,” he added.
Another
firm also won the contract for the Port Harcourt-Makurdi line in the sum of
N19bn.
The
committee observed that the firm had been paid N9.6bn, though the job had yet to
make appreciable progress.
But
Sijuwade insisted that “due process” was followed in the award of all the
contracts, adding that the NRC was prepared to take the lawmakers on a tour of
the projects sites whenever they were ready.
Lawmakers
described as an “anomaly” the complete sidelining of the Board of the NRC in
the award and the execution of all the contracts.
The
role of the board is limited to supervision of projects, while the management
of the NRC could award contracts under N1bn, but referred sums above N1bn to
the Ministry of Transport and the Federal Executive Council for approval.
Four
former board chairmen of the NRC had earlier appeared before the committee to
testify that they were not directly involved in the award of the contracts.
They
are Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, Alhaji Bello Haliru-Mohammed, Alhaji Abubakar Baraje
and Ambassador Ladan Shuni.
Baraje
stated, “My board did not play any role other than the inspection of projects
since the management of the NRC said we had no business with award of
contracts.
“I
had to resign on the 12th of November because I was a toothless bulldog; there
were no activities for me and there were also political reasons.”
Sijuwade
confirmed to the committee that none of the former board chairmen awarded any
contracts as the country’s Public Procurement Act bars them from taking charge
of contracts.
Source: The Punch
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