It came thirty-nine days after TheInvestigator published an indicting investigation revealing a large-scale procurement breach.
By Archibong Jeremiah
In a move likely to raise eyebrows, Cross River State Governor Sen. Bassey Edet Otu announced the suspension of Mr. Uko Jonathan Inaku as Chairman of the Civil Service Commission. The governor’s office did not provide a specific reason for the suspension, but it came thirty-nine days after TheInvestigator published an indicting investigation revealing a large-scale procurement breach.
Alongside the suspension, the governor’s office confirmed several new appointments. Sir Maurice Effiwat will assume the role of Acting Chairman of the Civil Service Commission.
Mr. Nsa Gill, State NUJ Chairman takes the reins as Chief Press Secretary to the Governor from Mr. Emmanuel Ogbeche who will now serve as Special Adviser, Media to the Governor (Abuja).
The press statement was signed by the SSG, Prof. Anthony Owan Enoh.
Mr. Linus Obogo was appointed Special Adviser, Media, and Publicity, while Prince Edwin Okon was confirmed as Chairman of the Cross River State Internal Revenue Service. Additionally, Mr. Abang Sylvester Otu was confirmed as the State Chief of Protocol.
Inaku, Procurement Law, And Substabdard Projects
TheInvestigator, a six-month-old digital newspaper in a three-month investigation established that contract fraud and substandard projects hurt the basic education sector in Cross River State.
The investigation proved Transparency International (TI) to be right when it emphasized that “66% of the money Nigerian governments allocate to education is stolen by corrupt officials” in its 2019 report.
Nigeria ranked 154th out of 180 countries on the Corruption Perception Index (CPI) according to Transparency International’s 2022 report.
The CPI aggregates data from eight different sources that provide perceptions by experts and business people on the level of corruption in the public sector. In 2015, Nigeria was ranked 136th, 136th in 2016, 148th in 2017, 144th in 2018, 146th in 2019, 149th in 2020, and 154th in 2021.
Procurement records from the State’s Due Process and Price Intelligence Bureau show that in 2019 the government initiated 36 educational projects; 12 were for the construction of model schools, 12 others for constructing motorized boreholes, and another 12 were for rehabilitating classrooms and hostels.
TheInvestigator uncovered that 8 out of the 12 model schools built were constructed by four companies owned by Inaku Jonathan Uko. The companies are Implementing Technology Ltd, Ijo Maritime Services Ltd, Rennies Works Ltd, and Royal Touch Technology Limited.
Again, in 2022, another 47 educational projects were initiated and Uko’s same four companies got five of them, totaling 13 contracts he got out of 83 between 2019 and 2022.
The award violates section 3 sub 1 (2) of the state procurement guidelines and rules which states that “contractors, no matter how competent, should not be loaded with contracts at any given time.”
For N35 million to complete a block of five classrooms with an office and toilet at Police Primary School in Ogoja LGA, his company, Ijo Maritime Service Ltd delivered a faulty structure.
The CAC incorporated Ijo Maritime Service Ltd for “Shipping and Marine Engineering” but the state government awarded it a contract. This violates Part 3, Section 6(a) of the State Procurement Law of 2020. It stipulates that “All bidders in addition to requirements contained in any solicitation documents shall possess the necessary professional and technical qualification to provide the goods, services, or works”.
His company built the Government Primary Model School Idundu in 2019 for N145,015,738.88 and it has no functional toilet because the construction of all 16 toilets in the contract was abandoned.
The school practices open defecation. On one occasion, a snake attacked the Head Teacher of the model school while defecating.
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