THE Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) yesterday in Abuja confirmed receipt of a petition lodged by contractors claiming to have won tenders for projects of the Delta State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission (DESOPADEC), which members of the House of Assembly have allegedly hijacked to be re-awarded to themselves or their cronies.
However, the EFCC Head of Media and Publicity, Wilson Uwujaren, who made this confirmation, has sued for patience to enable the commission process the said petition. He said: “The normal procedure with every petition is to follow due process.
“When the commission receives a petition, it has to vet it before it proceeds with investigation. It is not automatic that we just begin to investigate a petition upon receiving it. It has to be vetted first and that is the stage we are now on the Delta State contractors’ petition.”
He said he could not volunteer further information on the matter at this preliminary stage. Counsel to the contractors, Ikimi Oghenejabor, had last week submitted to the commission a petition dated January 3, 2013, in which the petitioners accused the state lawmakers of “manipulating and/or ensuring the re-award of contracts already awarded by DESOPADEC last year, and for which tenders have since been closed.”
The petition read: “Our clients duly applied for the publicly advertised jobs, for which tenders were held, and they paid all relevant statutory fees, including logistics for the jobs they applied for, and thereafter tenders were declared closed.
“Accordingly, the next process was for the letters of award to be issued to those who won their tenders for the execution of the jobs stated therein. It was at that stage that the board of the commission was dissolved and the present one inaugurated by Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan.”
The petitioners lamented that while they were awaiting their respective letters of award, they found out that some members of the House of Assembly were working through the back door to have the contracts re-awarded to themselves or their cronies.
“These shadowy members of the House of Assembly have been hijacking all the contracts tendered for by our clients, who duly paid for all tenders and meticulously bided for these jobs.
“Needless to say they spent time, money, resources and pains to follow through the process to the award stage only to be, regrettably, about to be shortchanged by these members of the Delta State House of Assembly.”
The petition also reminded DESOPADEC that there was already a legal contract between it and the contractors, meaning they are the bonafide recognised persons in law to receive and be given letters of award in respect of the jobs for which they won the tenders. It stated that any act by the commission to the contrary would be tantamount to a breach of contract.
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