Armoured vehicles: NCAA spent unapproved N403m on cars - Reps

The controversy generated by the reported N255 million expended on the two BMW bulletproof armoured cars allegedly purchased by the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) for the Aviation Minister, Mrs Stella Oduah, took a new twist, on Thursday.

The NCAA, it was discovered spent unapproved N403million to buy 29 vehicles.

The House of Representatives committee probing the transaction uncovered that the NCAA actually expended N643 million on 54 vehicles and the two bulletproof vehicles as against the N240 million appropriated by the National Assembly for the purchase of 25 utility vehicles in the 2013 capital budget of the agency.

This is coming just as the Director-General, Bureau of Public Procurement,  Emeka Ezeh, disclosed that the Bureau knew nothing about the purchase of the two BMW bulletproof cars by the NCAA.

The BPP boss, who was represented by a director in the Bureau, Mr Ayo Aderibigbe, maintained that approval for procurement of such nature ought to be approved by the Federal Executive Council (FEC).

This came to fore at the ongoing investigative hearing on the purchase of $1.6 million bulletproof BMW cars by the NCAA for minister of aviation, organised by House Committee on Aviation, chaired by Honourable Nkiruka Onyejeocha.

The minister, who was absent at the hearing, was ordered by the committee to appear before it unfailingly on October 29 failure which warrant of arrest might be issued against her.

The Permanent Secretary in the Ministry, Dr George Oti, had told the committee that the minister was in Israel to sign bilateral air agreement with her counterpart in Israel, stressing that the minister might not be able to keep to the October 29 date but the committee shut him down, saying that it had ruled that the minister must appear unfailingly on October 29.

A mild drama played out when the  chairman of the committee walked out the ministry officials led by the permanent secretary, however the officials left the venue of the investigative hearing grudgingly with one of the officials openly saying, “this is very unusual”.

When it was the turn of the NCAA to address the committee, its boss, Captain Fola Akinkuotu, declined to speak on the purchase of the two BMW bulletproof cars, saying that as at the time the contract was sealed, he was yet to assume duty.

He then asked the committee to allow the Director of Aerodrome Services, Mr Joyce Nkemakolam, who acted as DG, NCAA before he took over, to address the committee, the request the committee agreed to.

Addressing the committee, Mr Nkemakolam told the members that approval for the purchase of the two BMW bulletproof cars was granted by the minister and not the National Assembly, stressing that, approval for purchase of the vehicles were written to the minister which were dully approved.

To this end, the committee raised an alarm when Mr Nkemakolam claimed that NCAA bought the two bulletproof cars for N127 million each, totalling N255 million, but the chairman of the committee while expressing her disbelief over Mr Nkemakolam claimed, said that she had a document with her where a memo written to the minister by him had the sum of N70 million quoted as unit price for the two bulletproof cars, totalling N140 million for the two.

But when pressed further by the committee to give clarification on the differences, Mr Nkemakolam could not respond.

He, however, said that the vehicles were purchased through lease financing option funded by FirstBank of Nigeria, stressing that the vehicles were  still under the control of the financing bank.

He added that “with this procedure, we cannot flout the appropriation act”, but the committee countered him saying that the purchase was done outside the approval of the National Assembly.

Under the lease financing option adopted by NCAA, he added that the agency would pay back in 36 equal instalments on N23.2 million monthly, saying that only two instalments had been paid as at October this year.

But the committee raised the alarm that the lease financing agreement between the agency and the bank, with an interest of about N500 million plus N643 million agreed price, was too outrageous.

The 2013 capital budget approved by the National Assembly had the following items, 5 Toyota Hilux Pickup, 10 Toyota Corolla cars, 5 Toyota Lancruiser Jeeps, 3 Toyota Hiace Buses totaling N240 million.
Tribune