The Director-General of the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP), Dr Adebowale Adedokun, has vowed to expose and punish contractors and public officials who violate procurement laws, warning that the oil and gas industry will soon come under strict scrutiny.
Speaking on Arise News on Wednesday morning, Adedokun said his administration was determined to end impunity in the procurement process by publishing details of infractions, ordering refunds of stolen funds, and collaborating with anti-graft agencies for prosecution.
“You would have seen some major transformations happening in the country. If you mention procurement anywhere in the country, they will tell you it’s not business as usual,” Adedokun said.
“In recent memories, I have had to sanction some agencies of government to refund money back to the coffers of government and they are doing it. Some of my colleagues at EFCC and ICPC are daily receiving directives from me to prosecute erring public servants and contractors. What we have to do more of is to publish all these details, which we are doing.”
The DG revealed that President Bola Tinubu had personally urged him to make the procurement process more transparent by naming and shaming offenders.
“I spoke with the President, he said: ‘Please do it. I have nothing with anybody who violates the law. Go ahead and publish, let them face prosecution.’”
Adedokun explained that the BPP’s website has been rebranded to give Nigerians real-time information on procurement violations. He assured that citizens would begin to see details of infractions made public in the coming weeks and months.
The DG stressed that the oil and gas industry, previously exempted from strict scrutiny because of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), would soon be brought into the fold of procurement oversight.
“We were able to approve contracts in the sector many years ago, but because of the PIA, we held on. We are coming back to that. Procurement covers all sectors including oil and gas, and I can tell you that we are having behind-the-scenes discussions and very soon, we will shine our searchlight in that area. My colleagues at the ICPC are carrying out serious investigations, it’s just a matter of time, you will see the results.”
Adedokun admitted that enforcing procurement rules has not been difficult, pointing to poor compliance by Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), weak citizen engagement, and low awareness of procurement regulations as major hurdles.
“The lack of compliance by MDAs to follow instructions is one of the challenges we have faced. Also feasibility in terms of citizens’ engagement is poor. We are constantly engaging stakeholders to give them understanding. There is poor penetration of rules and regulations,” he said.
The DG also recalled that during the COVID-19 pandemic, rules were deliberately relaxed to allow quick interventions, but some people exploited the system.
“In COVID-19 we relaxed the rules and people took advantage of it, so we are finding it challenging to return people to what it used to be,” he noted.
Adedokun further identified lack of technical capacity among some procurement officers who misunderstand the nature of their job as another challenge.
“Some of them think procurement is just awarding of contracts,” he lamented.
Despite these issues, the DG insisted that reforms were underway to make Nigeria’s procurement more transparent and accountable.
He added that by combining sanctions, prosecutions, and open publication of violations, the BPP will restore public trust in how government funds are spent.
