Umahi: Contractors who Collect FG funds and Abandon Projects risk EFCC, ICPC action

The Minister of Works, David Umahi, has warned contractors handling Federal Government projects that they risk sanctions, including investigations by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), if they collect mobilisation funds and fail to commence or continue work.

Umahi gave the warning on Wednesday during a press briefing in Abuja, where he said the Federal Government would no longer tolerate contractors who prioritise state government projects over federal projects after receiving funds for their contractual obligations.

According to the minister, the ministry had rescoped and re-phased several projects to improve implementation, directing contractors who had received funds to return to their project sites or risk having the money recovered.

“All the money contractors have in their hands, they must exhaust it to earn more. We have rescoped the projects, we have re-phased them. From next week, any contractor that has collected money and is not on site, we will call up their APG to recover the money,” Umahi said.

He alleged that some contractors executing federal projects had been giving greater attention to projects awarded by state governments.

“I have noticed that some contractors handling federal projects are more serious with state projects than with federal jobs. I have made a commitment that that must stop,” he said.

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The minister also warned contractors against using political connections or lobbying government stakeholders to avoid fulfilling their contractual obligations.

“Those who collected money must do the work. The President is my boss, I listen to him.

“If you have Federal Government money, no matter who is behind you, you will either meet us at the EFCC or we will meet you in your bank to recover the money,” he warned.

Umahi said the ministry had strengthened its project monitoring and supervision system, with the involvement of six Senior Special Assistants to the President, the EFCC, ICPC, civil society organisations and student groups.

“It is going to be aggressive site visitation and supervision. We have alerted the EFCC, ICPC, civil society organisations. Students are also doing their own monitoring. We have unleashed six SSAs to Mr. President for project visitation and supervision,” he said.

Despite concerns over some underperforming contractors, the minister said several major road and bridge projects had been completed and were ready for commissioning.

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Among the projects he listed were sections of the 70-kilometre Kano-Maiduguri Road, including the Hadejia axis; the 43-kilometre Keffi-Mararaba Road; the 15-kilometre Lafia Bypass; and the 7.9-kilometre Bonny Island Road.

Others include the Obajana Junction concrete pavement on the Lokoja-Benin corridor, Danbatta-Demesu Road, rehabilitation of the Gombe-Bauchi Road, the Azare axis linking Jigawa and Bauchi, Apapa five-span bridge, the Eke-Obinagu 23-span flyover in Enugu, the 75-metre Tizm Bridge in Enugu, and the 24-kilometre Sagamu Interchange-Iperu Junction Road in Ogun State.

Umahi reiterated that the ministry would continue to monitor the execution of federal projects and take steps to recover public funds where contractors failed to meet their contractual obligations.