Count Me Out Of Maritime Contract Scandal – Minister

Minister of transportation, Mu’azu Sambo, has denied allegations of his involvement in the hijack of a maritime contract at the Nigerian Ports Authority, saying that Nigerians should count him out of such action.

This is barely two weeks to the end of this present administration and after the minister was accused in a media report of involvement in a maritime contract mess.

The minister stated this at the commissioning of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency Abuja Zonal Office in Abuja on Tuesday.

Sambo said if a contract is beyond the threshold of the Nigerian Ports Authority, then it becomes the duty of the ministry to conclude the process of procuring that contract and if the procurement process is at the ministerial tenders board level, then it ends at the ministry, however, if the contract has to go to the Federal Executive Council, certain other processes are required including seeking a No-objection from the Bureau of Public Procurement.

He went on to say that the ministry of Transportation was in the process of ensuring that all the terms and conditions for beneficiaries were favourable when the suspension of the Cabotage Vessel Financing Fund was announced.

Earlier, the minister, in a statement he signed, said “My attention has been drawn to false and baseless publications on some online media platforms regarding my alleged involvement in a purported hijack of a maritime contract at the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), a parastatal under my supervision. These allegations are nothing but a smear campaign orchestrated to tarnish my reputation and undermine my work as the Minister of Transportation.

“Let me be clear: Since I assumed Office as Minister in July 2022, my focus has been to meet the high expectations of stakeholders in the transportation sector. I have always acted with honesty, integrity and transparency, by the law and public interest.

“Surprisingly, the news outlets that carried the false report relied on anonymous sources, fabricated documents and distorted facts to create a narrative that suits their agenda or that of their sponsors. They not only violated the core ethics of journalism and the principles of fair hearing but have shown contempt for the truth, objective journalism and balanced reportage.”

On the new NIMASA office, the minister said, “Today, we are gathered here to commission the newly acquired NIMASA Abuja Zonal Office. At the same time, there may be those who will raise questions about the need for a Maritime Administration to secure an office in Abuja, where there is no ocean but I assure you that the acquisition of this office is not to fulfil another bureaucratic justification but due to the responsibilities and functions that the zonal office plays in discharging NIMASA’s mandate.

“The Abuja Zonal Office serves as the nexus point between the NIMASA and the Federal Ministry of Transportation, the National Assembly, and all other relevant Ministries, Departments and Agencies, as well as critical stakeholders like the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL), amongst others.”