The Nation Newspaper

Tag: contractors

  • Contractors decry Navy’s refusal to pay N32m for supply

    Some contractors engaged by the the Nigerian Navy Secondary School (NNSS) at Ojo, Lagos State, to supply building materials worth over N30 million have faulted the school’s alleged refusal to pay them.

    The contractors, who were represented by officials of Albert Matilda Limited and a contractor, Mr Idowu Adeniyi, said they were engaged to supply gravel, sand and sand-fill to build a sport complex for the school.

    They said efforts to pay them resulted in death threats from Navy officials.

    The contractors urged the naval authorities to investigate alleged fraud against the NNSS management.

    They also said they were issued dud cheques of over N31 million.

    The contractors recalled that last year when the school authorities gave out Local Purchasing Orders (LPOs) to some contractors to supply building materials, Hambal Global Resources Limited, a company allegedly jointly owned by an NNSS official, was among the bidders.

    One of the LPOs given to Albert Matilda Limited, dated March, 2, 2015, showed that a contract of N18.2 million to supply building materials was awarded to the company and others.

    They said building materials worth millions of naira were supplied to actualise the contract.

    According to them, rather than pay the money due to the contractors, the school authorities, represented by Deputy Commandant, Lt.-Com Sule Abdu, allegedly diverted it.

    It was gathered that Mrs Mariam Abdu, wife of NNSS deputy commandant, executed an undertaking on behalf of Hamebal Global Resources Limited to pay N13 million as “down-payment, being the 70 per cent of the N18,200,000 to be paid by March 27, 2015”.

    But after it reportedly failed, Abdu, according to the contractors and the contract documents, also executed another Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), dated April, 18, 2015, where he was said to have promised “to pay (Albert Matilda Limited) …N18 million as the full contract sum on or before Friday, May 8, 2015, whereas no such undertaking was made for Mr. Idowu Adeniyi”.

    But none of the undertakings was reportedly executed.

    The contractors said instead of paying them, the company issued several cheques, totalling N32.4 million, in various amounts to the contractors but were not honoured eventually.

    In the petition by their lawyer, Femi Falana and Co., addressed to the minister of Defence and copied to Cmr Bala Sule, the petitioners urged the minister to investigate the award of contract and the alleged dud cheques by Abdu.

    The law firm warned that it might petition the anti-graft agencies, if those copied failed to take action.

    Abdu said there were efforts to pay the contractors, adding that the school was handicapped by circumstances beyond its control.

    He called for a meeting with Falana to resolve the matter.

     

  • Ahmed orders contractors to site

    Ahmed orders contractors to site

    Kwara State Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed has directed contractors handling various projects to return to sites.

    Ahmed gave the directive yesterday in Ilorin, the Kwara state capital, at the monthly stakeholders meeting of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

    He said projects in the areas of energy, water, road construction, health and education would be completed as the state’ revenue improves, adding that his government places high premium on quality infrastructure for socio-economic development. He promised not to relent in facilitating the state’s economic growth.

    Governor Ahmed hinted that N5 million had been earmarked to carry out special infrastructural intervention projects in each of the 193 wards in the state, even as he promised to begin another round of youth and women empowerment programmes next week.

     

  • NEMSA: Uncertified electrical contractors risk imprisonment

    The Nigerian Electricity Management Service Agency (NEMSA) has warned electrical installation contractors without certification from the agency to get it or risk prosecution.

    It said the penalty for not acquiring the certificate is a three-year imprisonment or a fine of N500,000.

    The agency’s Chief Executive Officer, also the Chief Electrical Inspector of the Federation, Peter Ewesor, gave the warning during the inauguration of the Abuja Zonal Electrical Installation Contractors Certification Panel in Abuja.

    He said in addition to the imprisonment and fine, the holders of the certificates had sanctions,  which ranged from suspension of licence, a repeat of the installation if it had not caused havoc, and permanent withdrawal of the certificate if the installation led to an accident that caused loss of life.

    The panel has major stakeholders from the sector,  including the Zonal/Area Inspecting Engineer (NEMSA) as chairman.

    Others are from Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE) Standard Organisation of Nigeria, Electrical Engineer from Federal Ministry of Works, A representative of the Federal Ministry of Labour and Productivity, Licensed Electrical Contractors Association of Nigeria (LECAN), a representative of DisCos, Electrical Engineer in the Zonal Office as secretary, and a representative of Certification Unit (HQ).

    According to Ewesor, the agency under the Certification of Electrical Contractors in Nigeria on July 26 certified 6,500 contractors while there has been a high rush to the agency for re-certification.

    He said: “The reason we are doing this is that we have noticed that with the certification kicked off, the rush for recertification has been very high, and we have to start this inauguration for people who feel they have to be certified to be certified so that some people cannot be disenfranchised from the exercise.”

    The CEO noted that the goal of NEMSA is to weed out quacks to ensure the delivery of uninterrupted power supply to Nigerians, ensuring safety of lives and property.

    “Many lapses have been identified in the power sector and other places where electricity is used in the area of electrical installation, which have resulted to the unstable network and fire incidences over the years. These lapses include design and construction failure, improper planning and execution of electrical projects, use of substandard materials and equipment, deliberate oversight of procedures, code and requirements for executing electricity projects as specified by regulations and standard code of practice, lack of adherence to standard construction and installation and inadequate safety provisions during constrain and subsequent utilisation of the network,” he said.

    He said there are 16 zonal panels across the country, with the inauguration taking off from Abuja because of its proximity to the head office.

    On the composition of the panel of experts from different specialised organisations related to electricity, he noted that that Ministry of Labour was represented in the panel in order to address the issue of safety.

    The CEO said the agency was not certifying contractors for the fun of it, but for owing to the fact  that they  should be able to interpret the regulations, code of practice and also know the consequences of absence of earthing in a house.

  • Fed Govt, states, councils owe contractors N2.4tr

    The National Contractors Association of Nigeria has said the Federal Government, all the 36 states and 774 Local Government Areas are owing contractors N2.42 trillion.

    Federal Government alone is owing contractors N1.97 trillion, the group lamented.

    Its National Chairman, Hon. Onuche Okoh, who spoke yesterday  with reporters in Abuja on the agony of the members of the association, lamented that the non-payment of contractors has affected the welfare of his members.  He lamented that the association has lost about 579 members to heart attack.

    While supporting President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration fight against graft, Okoh appealed urged the president to look at the issue of welfare of contractors.

    He said the non-payment has been for years especially on contracts that have been executed.

    “By our statistics, the Federal Government alone is owing contactors about N1.97 trillion and if you add that together with the 36 states, Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and the 774 Local Government Areas is put at N2.42trillion.

    “The association is fully in support of the President Buhari administration’s fight against corruption and since the change mantra is for the common people, we wish to passionately appeal to the president to quickly take a look at the issue of the welfare of contractors over the years especially on contracts that have been executed.”

  • Streetlight contractors told to sit up

    Streetlight contractors told to sit up

    The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Administration has warned contractors handling the maintenance of streetlights to sit up or have their contracts terminated.

    FCT Minister, Malam Muhammad Bello gave the warning during an emergency meeting with the contractors.

    Represented by the Acting Coordinator, Abuja Metropolitan Management Council (AMMC), Hajiya Safiya Umar, the minister reiterated that the FCT Administration would not condone any further lackadaisical attitude from the contractors as they either perform or face outright termination of their contracts, adding that it is no longer business as usual.

    Bello in a statement issued by the Deputy Director cum Chief Press Secretary, Muhammad Sule said: “All streetlight contractors in the Federal Capital City must brace to the terms of their contractors of illuminating the city especially the major streets or face termination.”

    According to him, the FCT Administration is not in default of any of their payments as it has met all its contractual agreement, and therefore expects the contractors to be up and doing to fulfill their own obligation.

    “Our payments are up to date and therefore we expect effective service as no street in any part of the city should be in darkness, when there is electricity supply by the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company,” he emphasized.

    Meanwhile, the FCT Administration has written official warning letters to all the contractors to show the seriousness it attaches to the efficient functioning of streetlights in the city.

    A meeting was also held with the supervising officers in the Department of Facility Management and Maintenance to warn them of the consequences of not effectively supervising the contractors.

  • UNICEM abduction: Five released contractors injured

    UNICEM abduction: Five released contractors injured

    Five of the seven contractors of the United Cement Company of Nigeria (UNICEM) who were released yesterday by their abductors were injured.

    They were workers of Macmahon Holdings Limited, a UNICEM contractor.

    Two of the five were seriously injured, according to the company.

    A statement yesterday by the company reads: “Macmahon Holdings Limited is relieved to confirm the release of all s even of its men, who were abducted near its operations in Calabar, the Cross River State capital, on June 22. Five of the men have been injured; two of them seriously and all are currently receiving attention from a team of medical specialists.

    “The two uninjured men are also undergoing medical assessment. Arrangements have been made for the men’s safe return to their families, once they receive medical clearance to travel.

    “Macmahon’s Chief Executive Officer Sy van Dyk hailed the men for the courage they displayed throughout the ordeal, saying: ‘Our men have been through traumatic experience. We have mobilised medical and other support teams in Nigeria to provide immediate support. I also thank the men’s families for working so closely with the company during what has been an extremely difficult time for them as well. They too have endured an incredibly stressful experience.

    “The families have all been informed of the successful release of the men and have had the opportunity to speak to their loved ones. Our team has worked round the clock in locations around the world to bring them home. I am so proud of the dedicated and professional work they have done. While we are relieved to reunite the seven men with their loved ones, we are deeply saddened by the loss of the local driver, Matthew Odok, who was fatally injured during the initial incident.”

    van Dyk praised Nigerian authorities, which have worked closely with the company throughout the incident.

    “We are very grateful for the professional support we have received from the authorities on the ground in Nigeria,’ he said. ‘The assistance of local and federal agencies has been invaluable.”

    He also praised the efforts of the Australian, New Zealand and South African authorities and the company’s security advisors who have supported Macmahon’s crisis management team since the men’s abduction on Wednesday. ‘This has been an incredible team effort and our highest priority now is to finish the job by continuing to work together to get our people back safely to their families and homes,” he said.

  • Fashola and road contractors

    SIR: That above was an appeal made by the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN) at a meeting with contractors handling federal road projects preparatory to their remobilisation to their respective sites for the completion of the various abandoned road construction/rehabilitation projects that dot the nation’s landscape. This report was monitored on the 9pm NTA news on Monday May 16. This appeal by Fashola to contractors calls for serious concern from Nigerians. If this has been the practice with road construction prior to the government of CHANGE, it should be changed forthwith.

    It is not the duty of contractors to ensure standards. It is the duty of contractors to make maximum profits and any means, including underhand dealings, is fair to them in the attainment of this aim. It is however the duty of the project owner – the federal government in this case – to ensure that infrastructure projects are executed in compliance with approved design and standards. This is done by the appointment of competent owner’s engineers to be the federal government’s eyes and ears on the projects. In making a case for the appointment of owner’s engineers, we emphasise that utmost stock should be placed on competence and professionalism.

    The federal government plans to spend N220Billion on roads in 2016. It is suggested that capacity development for young Nigerians engineers be derived from such a huge expenditure. This can be achieved by attaching civil engineering graduates and interns to these projects. This, apart from providing practical skills for otherwise unemployed engineers, is also an avenue for providing employment even if on an ad-hoc basis pending the delivery of the projects.

    President Muhammadu Buhari promised us a country that we shall be proud of. He also enjoined that we should buy Nigeria to grow our economy. However, there were more foreigners, as contractors, in the meeting with Fashola than there were Nigerians. The Federal Government is well advised to walk the talk by being proud of Nigerian professionals and to buy Nigeria in the procurement of infrastructural projects. If indigenous engineers are not challenged, it is unfair to accuse us of non-performance. Bishop David Oyedepo of the Faith Tabernacle challenged the Nigerian engineers in the design of Winner’s Chapel auditorium and the Nigerian engineers rose to the challenge and delivered the project with only Made-in-Nigeria materials in record 12 months.

    We make bold to state that the foreign engineers practicing in Nigeria are not even among the best in their countries. The best foreign engineers do not ply their trade abroad. In most countries, foreign professionals are not allowed to practice without obtaining the local certification. Why is it that in Nigeria, all sorts of foreign technicians are allowed wears the toga of chief engineers without having local certification? Instances abound where the so-called foreign experts deployed to Nigeria at huge cost are unable to achieve the aim of their deployment without the inputs of their Nigerian counterparts.

    The ministry of power, works and housing should also enforce the defect liability clauses in the various contracts to ensure that upon the completion of the various projects, any portion of the respective roads that fails within the defect liability period is fixed by the contractor at no cost to the government.

    The Nigerian Society of Engineers has more than the adequate technical resources and competences and is ever ready to partner the federal government in the delivery of durable infrastructural projects. The NSE is also hereby urged to be unrelenting in advocating for a better deal for the Nigerians engineers while not sparing any effort to sanction practitioners that compromise competence and professionalism.

     

    • Lateef Salami,

    Lagos.

  • Contractors of yesterday

    Niger Delta ex-militia leader Government Ekpemupolo, popularly known as Tompolo, is trying hard to counter any suggestion that he might still be interested in pipeline surveillance contracts. He will need to try harder.

    In a May 17 statement that brought unpleasant memories of the unpopular security contracts awarded by the past Goodluck Jonathan administration to even more unpopular contractors, Tompolo said: “I want the whole world to know that I am not in competition with Ayiri Emami on pipeline surveillance contract.”

    This should not be interpreted to mean that Tompolo now thinks he is too big for pipeline surveillance contracts which helped to make him fantastically big. To appreciate how big Tompolo became as a result of the contracts, it is useful to recall that $103m, (about N21 billion then), was reportedly involved in the security contract controversially awarded to the Global West Vessel Specialists Nigeria Limited linked with him.

    It is interesting that Tompolo said in the statement: “…when I had one-year pipeline surveillance contract in Delta State, Ayiri Emami was one of the directors of the company (Oil Facility Surveillance Limited) in 2012. He could not protect the oil facilities in his beat, and so I was the one that was equally doing the job. It is on record, and the authorities of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) can bear me witness, that even those in Bayelsa (Pajereos Nigeria Limited) and Rivers (Adef Energy Resources Nigeria Limited) that had similar surveillance jobs like me, could not protect the oil facilities in their respective states.”

    Tompolo obviously feels proud of his record, and he seemed to be selling his services so subtly. But he may need to be reminded that this so-called record was achieved at the expense of the country. The dubious security contracts, from which Tompolo benefited, downgraded the regular security agencies in favour of militiamen and enriched militia leaders to the detriment of the country’s security personnel who should have been empowered to perform their duties.

    It is a cause for concern that Tompolo also said: “… Ayiri Emami and others accusing me of the destruction of oil facilities in parts of the Delta are simply looking for relevance, recognition and pipeline surveillance contracts. If anyone doubts what I am saying, such should find out from the GMD and Minister for State for Petroleum, because Ayiri and his likes have been troubling the minister for pipeline surveillance contracts for some time now. The minister has even succumbed to the Ayiri Emami gimmick by appointing some of his cronies as special advisers.”

    There should be no space at all for the discredited contractors of yesterday in whatever form.

  • N1trn rail contracts: Contractors to refund N2.5b

    The Hon. Ehiozuwa Agbonayinma-headed House of Representatives adhoc committee investigating the award and execution of rail contracts was yesterday told that six contractors involved in the over N1 trillion Rail Contracts are to refund N2.5 billion to the coffers of the Federal Government.

    The contractors who participated in the railway construction and rehabilitation contracts are to make the  refunds for excess payments made to the contractors by the Nigeria Railway Corporation (NRC).

    Officials from the Office of the Auditor- General of the Federation who were at the continued hearing of the panel investigating the rail contracts awards at the National Assembly said Audit Queries on the contracts were unanswered.

    Since the beginning of the investigations in October last year, the panel met with former Chairmen of the Board of the NRC and other stakeholders in the course of the investigative hearing.

    According to the OAGF official, CCECC, handling Lagos to Jebba rail line, is to refund N640 million while Costain West Africa Ltd, executing Jebba to Kano rail line is to refund N608 million.

    Geo Group Asano, executing signalling and communications upgrade is to refund N368 million to government coffers.

    Eser West Africa handling the Port Harcourt-Markurdi rail line is expected to return N339 million.

    CCEGG in charge of the Markurdi-Kano rail line would cough out N353 million, while Routing Nigeria Ltd would refund N221 million.

    Also at the hearing yesterday, Minister of Transport, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi who made a brief appearance told the lawmakers that the Ministry would conduct a forensic audit of the railway sector and all agencies under it, to ascertain if due process was  carried out in all its previous operations.

    He said: “I have written to Mr. President to permit the audit.”

    The minister however told the Committee that since he was not the minister at the time the contracts were awarded, it may be difficult for him to answer questions pertaining to them.

  • Presidential panel indicts over 300 contractors, army officers

    The Presidential committee set up to probe contracts awarded by the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) from 2011 to 2015 has indicted more than 300 companies and prominent citizens

    Serving and retired officers of the armed forces were also indicted by the committee.

    According to a statement by the Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, over N7 Billion has been recovered from the indicted companies and individuals.

    Another N41 Billion is to be refunded by the indicted companies, while further investigation by the EFCC has been ordered to determine whether another N75 Billion should be recovered from some of the companies for unexecuted or partially executed contracts.

    The committee also established that one of the indicted companies, Societe D’Equipment International was overpaid to the tune of 7.9 Million Euros and $7.09 Million.

    The committee which is different from the one investigating the Defence Arms and Equipment Procurement, discovered that there was a total disregard of salient provisions of the Public Procurement Act in the award of contracts by ONSA.

    It also noted that several contractors were apparently over paid, while others were given full upfront payments contrary to their contract terms and agreements in force.

    The panel also uncovered evidence of payments to individuals and companies by ONSA without any contractual agreement or evidence of jobs executed.

    The committee further discovered that some companies failed to meet up their tax obligations for contracts executed.