A retired director in the Procurement Department, Ministry of Aviation, Musa Odiniyan on Monday told the Federal Capital Territory High Court that Al Buraq Global Investment was not qualified for the contract awarded for the repairs of Katsina Airport by the Ministry under Hadi Sirika’s leadership.
Odiniyan is the fifth prosecuting witness in the trial of the former Minister of Aviation.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission is prosecuting Sirika and three others, Fatima Hadi Sirika, Jalal Sule Hamma, and Al Buraq Global Investment, on six amended charges bordering on contract fraud to the tune of N2,825,032,220.97.
A statement by the EFCC’s head of Media and Publicity, Dele Oyewale said the witness, during a cross-examination by counsel to the fourth defendant Michael Numa, SAN, reaffirmed his position in his evidence that the company could not have qualified for the bidding process or the contract award if open and competitive bidding was done.
“We use some criteria for determining the award of contracts for companies. I still maintain that if it was an open competitive bidding, the company Al Buraq may not have qualified,” the statement quoted him as saying.
He also disclosed that the reason for which the contract was paid was simply to ensure that it was completed and commissioned by former President Buhari before he left office.
“The reason for that payment was for the project to be implemented and commissioned before the exit of the former president. It was not for variation. The accounting officer sourced money from every relevant route to actualize the project. The N800 million is a budgetary allowance to support the actualisation of the project,” he said.
Oyewale also said Odiniyan further informed the court that two of the ministry’s contracts awarded to Alburak and Enginos on the Apron and Terminal Building of Katsina Airport, respectively, were captured under two different budget codes but appeared in a single code in the Procurement Department.
He said the judge, Justice S. C. Oriji adjourned the matter till March 10, 2025, for continuation of the cross-examination.
