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Published 20 May 2021
The House of Representatives has resolved to investigate the alleged abandonment of the Eastern Rail Line, the Port Harcourt-Maiduguri section, after the Federal Government awarded the reconstruction contract for N72.34bn.
At the plenary on Wednesday, the House resolved to set up an ad hoc committee to investigate the N19.2bn railway rehabilitation contract for the Port Harcourt-Makurdi section which was awarded to Esser Contracting Industry Company Incorporated.
The panel would also confirm the status of the entire contracts awarded for the 1443km Eastern Railway Line for approximately N72.34bn to Messrs Esser Contracting and Industry Company (Turkey), CGGC Global Projects Nigeria Limited and Lingo Nigeria Limited (in association with Strasky Husty and Partners Ltd of Czech Republic.
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Leke Baiyewu, Abuja
The House of Representatives has resolved to investigate a contract awarded in 2011 for the rehabilitation of the Port Harcourt-Makurdi section of the Eastern Rail Line valued at N19.2bn.
The House is especially probing into the allegation that the contract was awarded to a ghost firm.
The Minority Leader, Ndudi Elumelu, moved a motion of urgent public importance at the plenary on Monday, which was unanimously adopted by the House.
The motion was titled ‘Need to Investigate the N19.2 Billion Railway Rehabilitation Contract Awarded to Eser Contracting and Industry Company Incorporated.’
Elumelu said, “The House notes that Eser Contracting and Industry Company Incorporated was awarded the contract to rehabilitate the 463km Port Harcourt-Makurdi section of the Eastern Railway Line for N19.2bn in March 2011. The railway rehabilitation work was divided into three sections, namely 463km Port Harcourt-Makurdi track, 1016km Makurdi-K
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The contract was for the rehabilitation of the 463km Port Harcourt-Makurdi section of the Eastern railway line.
According to
Elumelu, there are allegations that while carrying out due diligence on the company, it was discovered that it was not existent as it was not duly registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) as required by the Procurement Act.
He said that Eser Contracting did not have the required Tax Clearance Certificate nor audited statement of account for the preceding three years and therefore had no legal capacity to conduct business in Nigeria.
Elumelu said that in the invitation to bid for the contract published in the November-December 2010 edition of the Federal Tenders journal, the Certificate of Incorporation was a major requirement listed as one of the criteria to bid for the job.