Nigeria Ports Authorities attempt to rehabilitate and expand its headquarters located at Marina,Lagos at a whooping cost of N5.1 bn, is turning into an avenue for top management officials to siphon money.
According to investigation, the complete rehabilitation and expansion of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), headquarters building in Marina,, Lagos was contracted with N5,001,785,839.05 to Messrs. Sageto Nigeria Limited on the December 22, 2010 with an 18 months completion mandate, while Messrs. AIMS Consultant Ltd bagged the consultancy job for the project.
However, three years after the contract was awarded to both firms, the project is barely 50 per cent completed, with the edifice covered and work seems ongoing, investigation revealed.
According to a source under anonymity , “the NPA headquarters rehabilitation project has become another means for successive NPA management to siphon money.
“This was a contract that was awarded at a time the former Managing Director of the NPA, Engr. Omar Suleiman came into office. The project outlived Suleiman and is not even near the concluding stage under the new Managing Director.
“They keep reflecting the money for the project in the annual budget of the NPA whenever it is time for the budget presentation at the National Assembly, yet rehabilitation works has dragged at a snail speed three years after it was approved.
Indicting the Members of the Senate Committee on Marine Transport, the source said that, “Members of the Senate Committee on Marine Transport and House Committee on Marine Transport have always raised questions upon questions anytime they are on oversight visit. It is gradually becoming an embarrassment to them anytime they are around.
Meanwhile, all efforts to reach the Spokesman of the NPA, Capt Iheanacho Ebubuegou prove abortive.
as at the time of filing this report.
In the same vein, a visit to the NPA headquarters in Lago by our correspondent shows that not much has been done as regards the construction.
It would be recalled that the NPA had recently claimed that capital projects being undertaken by the agency may suffer setbacks as the Ministry of Finance has refused to release over N18 billion that was accrued from the seven per cent port development levy since last year.
The seven per cent levy is collected on all goods imported through the seaports. It is officially collected by Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) and usually redirected to the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) for rehabilitation and development of the ports
In June 2008, the Nigerian Ports Authority building located on Marina street in Lagos caught fire which affected major parts of the building except the sixth floor, except the office of the managing director.
The fire, according to NPA Managing Director, Abdul Salam Mohammed started at around 9 a.m from the authority’s board room and efforts were made to ensure that it did not spread beyond the affected area.