BPP director testifies against Hadi Sirika over ‘N19.4bn’ contract fraud

Isaiah Yesufu, Director of Certification, Compliance, and Monitoring at the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP), testified against former Aviation Minister, Hadi Sirika, on Monday.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has charged Sirika, his brother Ahmad, and two companies with abuse of office and contract fraud.

The charges stem from a contract for the construction of a terminal building at Katsina Airport.

Yesufu, a prosecution witness, stated in court that the BPP was unaware of the division of the contract into separate parts. Sirika, his brother, and the companies are facing a 10-count charge before Justice Suleiman Belgore, which includes allegations of abuse of office, criminal breach of trust, and using their positions for personal gain.

The EFCC claims that Sirika awarded multiple contracts worth approximately N19.4 billion to his younger brother.

The commission specifically alleges that Sirika gave an unfair advantage to Enginos Nigeria Limited, owned by his brother Ahmad, by using his position to influence the award of the terminal building contract for N1,345,586,500.

Additionally, the EFCC alleges that Sirika influenced the award of a contract for the establishment of a Fire Truck Maintenance and Refurbishment Centre at Katsina Airport, valued at N3,811,497,685. The commission also claims that Ahmad and Enginos Nigeria Limited possessed N2,337,840,674.16, which they knew represented proceeds from Sirika’s alleged criminal actions.

The defendants have pleaded not guilty to the charges.

During his testimony, Yesufu explained that a bidder for any government contract is required to submit an affidavit affirming that there is no relationship between the company and the procuring entity. If there is a relationship, it must be disclosed to avoid conflicts of interest, and any involved officer must recuse themselves from the procurement process.

Yesufu added that for the Katsina airport terminal contract, the Ministry of Aviation requested approval to use a restricted tendering process due to time constraints. The approval was granted for five companies, including Enginos Nigeria Limited.

Afterward, the ministry completed the procurement process and awarded two contracts: one to Enginos and another to Al-Buraq. However, Yesufu testified that the BPP was unaware that the contract, initially titled “Construction of Katsina Airport Terminal Building and Apron,” was split into two separate contracts.

He only became aware of the split when he was invited by the EFCC and made his statement.

Yesufu confirmed that Enginos Nigeria Limited was awarded the contract for the terminal building at a cost of N1,345,586,500.

At this point, the prosecution counsel, Rotimi Jacobs (SAN), requested an adjournment to sort out some documents. The other parties did not object, and Justice Belgore adjourned the case until April 8 for the continuation of Yesufu’s testimony.