House Committee Faults $49m Contract to Undertake Integrity Test for Refineries

Steps down electoral offences, entrepreneurship bank bills over sponsorship controversy Motion for review of judicial officers’ salaries stepped down

The House of Representatives has queried the $49 million contract awarded to Technimont to undertake integrity test for refineries across the country.

Chairman of the ad hoc committee investigating the state of the country's refinery, Hon. Ganiyu Johnson, yesterday queried the company in Abuja.

The contract was awarded in 2019 at $49 million by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to Technimont.

The contract was for the first phase of the refurbishment of refineries across the country.

He stated that the state of refineries in the country revealed that some infractions had been discovered during its investigation.

He further blamed the NNPC for failure in its duty to undertake regular turn around maintenance.

The lawmakers however asked both parties to submit all evidences of contract approved by the Federal Executive Council and payment proofs including the level of work done to the committee.

The committee had been engaging the NNPC and engineering company handling the contract for the $1.3 billion rehabilitation exercise of the refinery which they alleged had yielded no result.

House Steps Down Electoral Offences, Entrepreneurship Bank Bills over Sponsorship Controversy

Meanwhile, the House of Representatives at plenary yesterday stepped down two bills seeking investigation and prosecution of electoral offences and establishment of entrepreneurship development bank over sponsorship controversy.

The lawmakers also stepped down a motion seeking for an upward review of judicial officers’ salary.

The first bill titled, "Bill for an Act to Establish National Electoral Offences Commission and the Electoral Offences Tribunal to Provide for the Legal Framework for Investigation and Prosecution of Electoral Offences for the general Improvement of the Electoral Process in Nigeria; and for Related Matters (HBs.1589, 695, 1372 and 1472)," sponsored by Hon. Aishatu Dukku, Hon. Francis Uduyok, and Hon. Kingsley Chinda was presented for second reading.

The House Leader, Hon. Alhassan Ado-Doguwa whose name was also listed as a cosponsor, when called upon by the Speaker Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila to lead the debate on its general principles, informed the Speaker that he could not because he wasn't consulted by the sponsors of the Bill beforehand.

"When you have a bill of this nature the leader should be consulted, I was not consulted. And my name is included," Doguwa said

Raising a point of order, another lawmaker, Hon. John Dyegh told the Speaker that he had sponsored the Bill severally in previous and present Assembly, wondering why his bill was not among those consolidated.