- The House of Reps is looking into a $44 million contract which was awarded to a company allegedly convicted in Switzerland
- The NGO which wrote the petition stated that documents at the Swiss Embassy revealed collusion between staff of the alleged convicted company and some staff of the NPA in a bribe-for-contract scandal
- Hon Wole Oke (PDP, Osun), who chaired the hearing, described the allegations as “very, very serious”
A $44 million contract for a remedial work at Escravos Channel, replacement of navigational aids, and minor dredging in Delta state, which was awarded to a company allegedly convicted in Switzerland has raised concern in the House of Representatives, Guardian reports.
The issue was raised following a petition by Cadrell Advocacy Centre, a non-governmental organisation (NGO), which claimed that: “Dredging International Services Nigeria Limited (Dredging Int’l) was in fact and indeed convicted by a court of competent jurisdiction in Switzerland.
“Awarding the contract to the said company would be contrary to the clear provisions of Section 16(8e & f) of the Public Procurement Act, 2007.”
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The group continued: “It is a notorious fact that documents available at the Swiss Embassy reveal that there was an investigation by the office of the attorney general, Department of International Affairs, Switzerland, that Dredging International Services Ltd/Dredging International Services Cyprus (both subsidiaries of DEME Group Belgium) and some officials of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) were alleged to have been involved in a bribe-for-contract scandal of $20,000 and subsequently convicted on May 2, 2012 and fined SFr1 million by the court for bribing Nigerian officials.
"As reported in Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), an international magazine, NPA awards dredging contract worth $70,000 each year to Dredging Int’l, without competitive bidding as required by Nigerian laws. And till date, this convicted company is believed to have won jobs worth at least N717 billion and $2.280 billion from NPA.”
The executive director of the NGO, Evans Ufeli, subsequently urged the House to “invoke her powers under Sections 88 and 89 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) to blacklist/disqualify Dredging Int’l and any convicted company from bidding for or executing contracts in Nigeria.”
However, the legal adviser to Dredging Int’l, Franklin Peterside, denied the allegation. He said none of the company’s directors was convicted anywhere in the world; and described the petition as being speculative.
He further said there was no connection between Dredging Int’l and the convicted company registered in Cyprus.
Hon Wole Oke (PDP, Osun), who chaired the hearing, described the allegations as “very, very serious.”
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Meanwhile, NAIJ.com previously reported that the House of Representatives adopted a motion urging the federal Ministries of Finance and that of Trade and Investment to halt any further renewal of contract of the coordinator of the Growth and Empowerment (GEM) project.
The project is an initiative of the federal government, World Bank, and DFID to increase the growth of firms and employment in Nigeria.
It was learnt that the lawmakers also asked that status quo be maintained in the best interest of the country.
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Source: Naija.ng