FG approves, gives reasons for N327bn Ogoni cleanup, others

The Federal Executive Council (FEC) on Wednesday, in Abuja, approved various projects worth N326.7bn in the ministries of Environment, Transportation, Water Resources, Youth and Sports, Federal Capital Territory, Finance and Works and Housing.

They include the second phase of the Ogoni water project and the central remediation of newly-identified hydrocarbon-impacted sites, the provision of security gadgets and e-ticketing facilities at the Lagos-Ibadan and Warri-Itakpe railway corridors as well as the rehabilitation of various federal roads nationwide.

Others were the approval of contracts for the creation of masterplans for 17 airports including the Abuja, Port Harcourt, Kano, Owerri, Benin, Enugu, Maiduguri, Yola, Kaduna, Calabar, Ilorin, Sokoto, Ibadan, Jos, Akure and Katsina airports.

Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, revealed this to journalists after the Council’s over seven-hour meeting presided over by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo at the State House, Abuja.

Speaking after the marathon session, Shehu said the Council considered 37 agenda items in which some contracts were approved in various sectors.

“Today’s meeting has been a very long day for everyone, 37 agenda items were considered for today’s meeting. Quite extraordinary,” Shehu said.

Fielding questions on why the administration had waited until few days to its exit to approve the volume of contracts, the Ministers of Transportation, Mu’azu Sambo and his counterpart in Water Resources, Sulaiman Adamu, took turns to argue that the regime had to continue its duties until May 28.

Sambo said, “Without any intentions of mischief, this government was elected to function from 2019 to precisely May 29, 2023. Should we now stop functioning one month before the next appointment because we’re coming to the end of the tenure?

“This government must work. We expect the next government to also work until the very last day of their tenure.”

On his part, Adamu, explained that given the slow contract approval process, the FG was forced to stick to the process even if that meant leaving its unfinished business for the incoming government.

“There are processes and these processes have started. We’re still operating the 2022 budget. These things are not just done in one day. We had lots of submissions to BPP to ICRC, all the agencies involved in the procurement, and they have to get ready.

“So, anytime they’re ready, it’s at that point that we have to submit. We do not control the process, but when they are completed and we’re still in office, we’re duty-bound to bring these memos to Council for it to approve. Government is a continuum.

“I can assure you a lot of contracts will not see the light of day in the next one week or two. And for those, we don’t have any option but to let the process continue for the next government to come and continue. That’s what we face also.”

Wednesday’s meeting saw the approval of contracts for projects worth at least N327.34bn.

Speaking on behalf of the Minister of Environment, Mohammed Abdullahi, Shehu described the meeting as ‘Ogoni day’, revealing that FEC approved N22.8bn for the second phase of the Ogoni water project and N107bn for the central remediation of newly-identified hydrocarbon-impacted sites.

He said, “You also can rightly call today as a true Ogoni day because two major contracts were approved for Ogoni. And you know that Ogoni is one of the flagships of the Buhari administration. And we’re obviously are aware that the whole world is watching Nigeria and seeing what we’re doing here.

“So there are water projects that have been awarded under the second phase in Ogoni land amounting to N22.8bn. Approval was also given for the award of the contract for the remediation of newly identified hydrocarbon impacted sites along the shoreline of Ogoni land and this is for about N107bn.”

In the Aviation ministry, the Council approved N3.4bn as consultancy fee for the construction of a second runway at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International airport, Abuja.

Shehu who also spoke on behalf of the minister, Hadi Sirika, said the Council also approved N449.9m for the engagement of consultants for the development of masterplan for 17 airports nationwide.

They include the Murtala Mohammed International Airport (Lagos), Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (Abuja), Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport (Kano), Port Harcourt, Owerri, Benin, Enugu, Maiduguri, Yola, Kaduna, Calabar, Ilorin, Sokoto, Ibadan, Jos, Akure and Katsina airports.

The presidential spokesman further announced that ₦90bn was approved for the completion of various roads totalling over N125bn even as N10.3bn was approved for the construction of a multi-storey office complex for the Federal Inland Revenue Service in Lagos.

Over N33bn was approved for the completion of some major roads in Borno, Adamawa, Kogi, Delta, Ondo, Ogun and Benue States, he revealed.

Shehu also noted that Council approved the establishment of the National Institute for Domestic Security at Irogbo-Ilesa, Osun State, which had a budgetary provision of N285m and N360m in the 2022 and 2023 budgets respectively.

Also speaking, the Minister of Transportation, Mu’azu Sambo, revealed that the Council approved a total of N4.3bn for the provision of security equipment for the railway stations nationwide.

“The first of them was in respect of the provision of security equipment for the Nigerian railway stations across the country phase two. The second security equipment include baggage scanners, walkthrough metal detectors, X-ray male scanners, liquid explosive detectors, narcotics cam trace, bomb detectors, among others.

“It was awarded to Messrs Advonix Services Nigeria Limited in the sum of N4.3bn with a completion period of 12 months. The second memorandum is also from the Nigerian Railway Corporation to provide a secure e-ticketing solution for the Lagos-Ibadan corridor and the Warri-Itakpe corridor under a design, finance, build, operate, maintain and transfer public-private partnership arrangement for the Nigerian Railway Corporation.

“The Lagos Ibadan corridor was approved in favour of Messrs Global Software Digital Solutions Limited/Datamatics Global Services Limited for a concession period of 10 years at a sharing ratio of 81.5 per cent to NRC and 18.5 per cent to the concessionaire,” Sambo revealed.

He added that the Warri-Itakpe corridor under the same partnership arrangement was approved for Messrs Fein International Consult Limited/Artificial Intelligence Technologies Limited for a concession period of 10 years with the same sharing ratio

Sambo said that N4.19bn and N4.47bn were approved for the procurement of a Port Harcourt zonal office and Abuja liaison office buildings, respectively, for the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency.

“For the Port Harcourt building, it was purchased from Messrs Integrated Console Company Limited, it is a three storey building, in the sum of N4.19bn inclusive of seven and a half percent VAT.

“While that of Abuja is a four-storey building at plot number 622 Cadastral Zone CBD Abuja in favour of Messrs Avalon Intercontinental Nigeria Limited in the sum of N4.47bn inclusive of all taxes,” he said.

The Council also approved memoranda presented by the Ministry of Water Resources for a concession for the operation and maintenance of the proposed Gurara II 300MW hydroelectric power project.

The Minister who spoke earlier said the project would be financed by China’s EXIM Bank loan along with 15 per cent equity contribution by the contractor and 50 per cent counterpart funding by the federal government.

The 30-year concession is expected to pay back between $800 and $900 million, Adamu said.