Governor Alia wants to embezzle more Benue resources
…Group raises alarm over violation of procurement law, calls for anti-corruption probe
A pro-democracy group, the Network for Transparent Governance (NTG), has accused the Governor of Benue State, Hyacinth Alia, of illegally appointing himself as Chairman of the Benue State Public Procurement Commission, in a move the group says contravenes the law governing public procurement in the state.
In a statement signed by its Secretary General, Oliver Omenka, NTG cited the Benue State Public Procurement Law of 2020, enacted during the administration of former Governor Samuel Ortom. According to the group, the law clearly outlines the structure and leadership of the State Council on Public Procurement and the Public Procurement Commission, but does not provide for a gubernatorial role as Chairman of the Commission itself.
The statement reads:
“The Network For Transparent Governance (NTG), decided to peruse provisions of the law as enacted by the previous government of Samuel Ortom, and we found that it provides in Section 3 (1 & 2) for the establishment of the Benue State Council on Public Procurement and section 9(1) of the same law provides for the appointment of a Director-General of the Public Procurement Commission. The functions of the Commission are to serve as the regulatory authority responsible for monitoring and oversight of public procurement, harmonizing existing government policies and practices by regulating, setting standards, and developing the legal framework and professional capacity for public procurement in Benue State, and for purposes connected therewith.
“The State Governor is mandated by law to serve as the Chairman of the Council, whose functions are not day-to-day and are, more or less, ad hoc in nature. The Commissioner of Finance is to serve as Vice Chairman, among other members.
“The Governor is not mandated to serve as Chairman of the Public Procurement Commission. In fact, there is no such role in the Commission as “Chairman.” The law provides for the appointment of a Director-General, whose duty is to run the Commission on a day-to-day basis. See section 9(2)(a-c) of the law.
“The law specifically states that the Commission shall serve as the Secretariat for the Council. It further states that the Director-General shall be:
“(a) the Chief Executive and Accounting Officer of the Commission;
(b) responsible for the execution of policy and the day-to-day administration of the affairs of the Commission; and
(c) a person who must not be below Grade Level 15 in the civil service of the state, must be a graduate of not less than ten (10) years, and a member of the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply Management of Nigeria, Nigerian Institute of Architects, Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN), the Nigerian Institute of Quantity Surveyors, or any other relevant recognised professional body in Nigeria.
“So, where does the State Governor come into the picture above as Head of the Commission?
“Whatever informed Governor Alia’s decision to appoint himself to the non-existent position of “Chairman” of the Benue State Public Procurement Commission certainly also have informed his decision to appoint himself as Commissioner for Works, and at the same time, as Special Adviser, Bureau for Local Governments and Chieftaincy Affairs.
“With this development, it is clear that Governor Alia has positioned himself as the sole individual responsible for the award of contracts by himself and for himself and cronies without anyone asking him questions or carrying out any due process. Already, the State House of Assembly is in his pocket being headed by his stooge as Speaker, Alfred Emberga.
“Alia has scrapped the State Ministry of Works, thereby creating direct control for himself of all contracts awards which are highly inflated and given to his cronies and Fulani elites who sponsored his election with N7 billion. The governor is now directly in full possession of local government funds since he removed the last Adviser on the local government bureau.
“NTG calls on the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to act swiftly and tighten its grip on the government of Hyacinth Alia to save Benue State from the ongoing fleece of its resources by a so-called reverend father”, the group submitted.
