THE Federal Government has instituted probe into the abandoned Katampe District Engineering Infrastructure project worth over N61 billion.
Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Malam Muhammad Musa Bello, inaugurated a 16-member Inter-Ministerial Committee to look into the abandoned project and make appropriate recommendations within the next six weeks.
He, however, said the project audit was not intended for witch-hunting, but rather a fact-finding exercise designed to assist the FCT administration to diagnose the problems that have threatened the success of the PPP project, with a view to identifying appropriate solutions and ensuring successful completion.
Bello, expressed disappointment that the Public Private Partnership (PPP) project, which was commenced on January 17, 2012 and scheduled to last for 36 months, was just 16.4 per cent completed as at January, 2015, three years after.
“It is disappointing that as at January 16, 2015 when all construction works ought to have been completed, the project achieved only 16.4 per cent completion and the developer suspended construction works at the site since December 2014.
“The expectation was that this pioneer FCTA PPP Project would be completed within 36 month. Regrettably, that initial high hope has been dashed, as the success of the project has been considerably undermined by crisis of performance,” he said.
The minister, therefore, charged the committee to review the extent of compliance with the obligations and the processes of the PPP Contract Agreement by the FCTA/FCDA, the Developer, Lenders, the Independent Engineer, the PPP Consultant, ICRC and other government agencies with reference to the technical and financial performances.
The committee tagged “Inter-Ministerial Committee on Contract and Financial Audit of the PPP Project for the Development of Engineering Infrastructure for Katampe District, Abuja”, and is chaired by a retired Permanent Secretary, Engineer Zanna Baba-Gana.
The committee was to also establish the extent of interventions by relevant government agencies with respect to the monitoring of the PPP Contract, establish any shortcomings in the performance of the PPP Contract in the course of the review and make appropriate recommendations on the way forward.
He said that members were carefully selected on the basis of their competences, commitment, integrity and track records; adding that the FCT administration was confident that they would undertake a thorough and fair contract and financial audit.
FCT Permanent Secretary, Dr. Babatope Ajakaiye disclosed that the 16-Member Committee has Federal Ministry of Finance, the Central Bank of Nigeria, the Bureau of Public Procurement, the Federal Ministry of Justice, Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, office of the Accountant General of the Federation, Auditor-General of the Federation and the Debt Management Office as well as officials of the FCT Administration fully represented in the Committee.
He expressed confidence that the Committee Chairman, Engr.Zanna Baba-Gana, whom he described as being of indisputable reputation, would do a good job and make useful recommendations
Responding on behalf of the members of the Committee, the Chairman, Engr. Zanna Baba-Gana said the Committee would find solution to the problem since the Committee is fact finding.
Engr. Baba-Gana further assured that the Committee would work diligently and honestly to enable FCT Administration re-start the project and achieve its aim.