The Senate on Tuesday began a probe into the alleged abandonment of an N8bn Code of Conduct Bureau permanent site, which is under construction, to buy a building valued at N9bn.
The lawmaker, representing Kogi West Senatorial District, Senator Dino Melaye, moved the motion for the probe during the day’s plenary in Abuja.
Melaye alleged that after the CCB got an approval from the National Executive Council to build its permanent site, the contract for its permanent site was reviewed upward from over N3bn to over N8bn.
He added that after the contract was awarded and over N1.4bn had been paid to the contractor, which represented about 16 per cent of the contract sum, the bureau abandoned the project which had reached 10 per cent completion.
“Surprisingly, in the 2016 budget, the CCB, rather than investigate why the work done on site was not commensurate with the money released, requested for the purchase of a new building to serve as the permanent site, thereby abandoning completely the ongoing construction,” Melaye alleged.
The senator, who noted that it was an allegation that should be subjected to an investigation, claimed to be in possession of documents to buttress the veracity of the claim.
Melaye stated, “The Senate notes with serious concern the dumping of N8bn office headquarters’ project by the Code of Conduct Bureau.
“The Senate is aware that the Code of Conduct Bureau, after spending over N1bn on the construction of the office complex, with complete approval by the Federal Capital Development Authority; with design by the Federal Capital Territory Administration and supervision ongoing by the FCT, has opted to purchase a completed nine-storeyed
building located in the Central Business District of Abuja, just as the abandoned one is also located in the same business district.
“The Senate is aware that in spite of the due releases to the bureau in the 2016 budget, the bureau went for the sum of N4.4bn to buy the nine-storeyed building.
“The Senate is worried that the action by the CCB in the whole exercise is not expected of an institution that is supposed to protect and watch over the finance of the society by checking corrupt practices in the Nigerian public service.”
The lawmaker prayed that the Senate mandated its committees on Federal Capital Territory, and on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions to carry out a holistic investigation into the matter and report back to the Senate.
The Deputy President of the Senate, Ike Ekweremadu, who presided over the plenary, stated that Melaye’s motion bordered on an allegation, which had to be investigated.
He said, “This Senate recognises the absolute need for the bureau to have a befitting office. I think the issue now is whether there is an ongoing project being abandoned in preference to purchasing an existing one. We are here to ensure that public finances are appropriately spent.”
Ekweremadu asked that the Senate committees on Public Procurement, on FCT and on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions conduct the probe and report back to the lawmakers in two weeks.
Also, the Senate on Tuesday began a probe into the concession of the eastern and western rail lines to General Electric, a United States-based company, without following due process.
The lawmakers made the move following a motion by Senator Bassey Albert (Akwa-Ibom North-East), entitled, ‘urgent need to investigate the granting of concession of the western (Lagos-Kano) and eastern (Port Harcourt-Maiduguri) rail lines to General Electric, a US company’.
“The Senate is convinced that the Ministry of Transport has violated the provisions of the Public Enterprises (Privatisation and Commercialisation) Act, 1999 by unilaterally engaging the General Electric for the concession of the western (Lagos-Kano) and eastern (Port Harcourt-Maiduguri) rail lines as evident from the above facts,” Albert stated while moving the motion.
He recalled that the Public Enterprises (Privatisation and Commercialisation) Act, 1999 established the National Council on Privatisation and the Bureau of Public Enterprises for the purpose of privatisation of public enterprises.
He noted that the BPE and the Nigeria Infrastructure Advisory Facility, upon the approval of the NCP in April 2015, developed a road map for the concession of the Lagos-Kano and Port Harcourt-Maiduguri rail lines “despite the fact that the Nigerian Railway Corporation Act did not envisage a concession of the corporation until recently amended.”
Meanwhile, members of the Nigeria Union of Railway Workers and the Senior Staff Association, Nigerian Railway Corporation branch staged a protest against the planned concession of the 3,505km narrow-guage railway track to General Electric without the payment of the workers’ entitlements.
In a decent society, Dino & his likes should have been behind the bars. However, am sure Nigerians are fed up with probes without results. It is doubtful if our judiciary, legislators, excutive were ready for the ‘change’ mantra. Let’s disband the 3 arms & restart!