The Akwa Ibom State government has described as spurious and infantile the insinuations by the African Democratic Congress (ADC) party that virtually all contract awards and procurements in the state have failed the due process and due diligence test.
The leadership of the state chapter of the ADC has, in a petition signed by its Publicity Secretary, Manfred Ekpe, accused Governor Umo Eno of awarding road and housing contracts to politicians, cronies and friends of government without following the due process of open bidding.
The party alleged that kickbacks and other under- the – table proceeds are remitted into the secret coffers of the governor through cronies.
But in a swift reaction, the chief press secretary (CPS) to the governor, Ekerete Udoh, condemned such blanket insinuation as “misleading and absolute falsehood taken too far.”
“This latest attempt by the ADC to draw attention to itself and mislead the public is not only a falsehood taken too far but also exposes the indiscretion of political jobbers desperately seeking relevance,” he noted, disclosing that the governor has no business in contract awards.
“The ADC’s claim that governor Umo Eno, personally handles contracts is laughable and displays their crass ignorance of the processes of government and the mechanics of execution.
“All contracts in Akwa Ibom state are awarded through the Finance and General Purpose Committee (FGPC), which serves as the procurement warehouse of all state projects after which the projects/contracts are approved by the State Executive Council (SEC), in line with budgetary provisions.
“The governor, does not and cannot unilaterally award contracts even if such contract is within the limit of the approvals which the law allows the governor.”
On the claim that the Uyo Village Road project was awarded to Nsik Motors, Udoh, dismissed it as “outright falsehood, showing how vacuous their ill- motivated expedition represents.”
“For the avoidance of doubt, the contract was awarded to AMITEC Construction Limited, a highly reputable firm with a track record of quality infrastructure delivery in the state. The ADC should have taken the time to verify their facts instead of spreading deliberate misinformation,” he explained.
The governor’s spokesman, therefore, stressed that “all contracts awarded are put through rigorous scrutiny within the parameters sanctioned by law,” maintaining that “projects are executed with adherence to transparency and due process.”
To ensure timely job delivery, he disclosed that the state has set up a Project Evaluation and Monitoring Team (PEMT) of highly trained professionals “to carry out responsibilities diligently.”
On the Arise Compassionate Homes (ACHs) for the elderly and very poor people across the 31 local government areas, he stated that “the houses are executed through direct labour, with all work handled by resource persons drawn from areas where the homes are located,” vowing that “not a single home has been constructed through a company.”
“The Procurement Law does not mandate the publication of names of labour or resource persons for projects executed through direct labour. The ADC’s claim regarding non-disclosure of contractors is, therefore, misleading and baseless,” he stressed.
