Reps query N3.3b roads contracts

House of Representatives Committee on Public Account at the weekend queried the Ministry of Works over two roads contracts worth N3.3 billion in Nassarawa and Enugu State.

The query, raised by the Chairman of the committee, Solomon Olamilekan Adeola, was a follow up to queries raised by the Office of the Auditor-General of the Federation on the two road projects.

According to him, "The first contract was in Nassarawa State and for the sum total N2.3 billion. The initial contract was awarded by the Nassarawa State Government for N77million, but re-awarded by the federal Government for N2.3b on the excuse that it was a Federal Road".

To shed light on the whole scam, the committee has summoned a former member of the House of Representatives, Nicholas Ukachukwu who facilitated the contracts at both state and federal levels.

The committee also queried the Ministry over another N1.045 billion contract for Nsukka-Adani road in Enugu State.

Members of the committee were interested in why the Ministry overpaid the contractor N22 million two years after he abandoned the road project.

The Chairman of the committee expressed concern at the over payment especially when the contract had been stopped. "How come the Federal Ministry of Works issued certificates for further payments to the contractor in 2005 and 2006 even though the contract was terminated in 2004?"

The committee members were not satisfied with the explanation given by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Abubakar Mohammed, who told the committee that the contractor involved in the Nassarawa contract took the Federal Government to court and the court ordered the government to pay N1.3billion

The committee had demanded that the Bills of Quantity of both contracts - that of N77m and the inflated N2.3 million - be brought before the committee for proper verification.

The committee wondered why the contract was inflated and that it should be properly looked into via the Bills of Quantity so that the issue could be resolved as the termination of the contract calls for a lot of questions.

Compass