The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) yesterday issued Senate President, Godswill Akpabio and House of Representatives Speaker, Abbas Tajudeen a seven-day ultimatum to account for N18.6 billion allegedly missing from funds allocated for the construction of the National Assembly Service Commission (NASC) Office Complex.
The ultimatum followed the latest 2022 annual report published by the Auditor General of the Federation on September 9, which raised questions about how the money was disbursed, amid allegations of inflated contracts, absence of procurement documentation, and non-compliance with financial regulations.
SERAP asked Akpabio and Abbas “to disclose the name of the alleged ‘fictitious construction company’ that reportedly collected N18.6 billion for the construction of the National Assembly Commission Office Complex, including the names and details of the directors, shareholders and the company’s address”.
The group also asked them “to explain the failure to follow the Procurement Act, including the failure to carry out any needs assessment before the award of the contract, to advertise the bidding, to issue a contract agreement, and to issue bidders’ quotations before the construction company was paid N18.6 billion”.
SERAP further asked the duo “to explain the rationale for the ‘inflation of the contract by N6.9 billion for the conversion of the roof garden to office space’, and why no approval was obtained for the upward review of the contract, and to disclose the implementation status of the project”.
It said: “These grim allegations by the Auditor General suggest grave violations of the public trust, the 1999 Constitution 1999 (as amended), and national and international anticorruption obligations.
“The National Assembly can only effectively perform its oversight and anti-corruption roles if it can demonstrate exemplary leadership to probe the allegations of corruption and mismanagement involving the NASS commission.
“The National Assembly ought to live up to its constitutional responsibilities by upholding and defending the basic principles of transparency, accountability and the rule of law.
The body added: “Addressing the allegations would improve public confidence and trust in the ability of the National Assembly to exercise their constitutional and oversight responsibilities, and to adhere to the highest standards of integrity, transparency and accountability in the management of public funds. “It would also show that the National Assembly is acting in the best interest of the people, and not for personal interest.”
