Following
the allegations of fraudulently allocating contracts to ghost
companies, SGF, Babachir Lawal has reiterated his innocence in the PINE
contract scandal.
Babachir Lawal
Embattled Secretary to the Government of the Federation SGF, David
Babachir Lawal has again exonerated himself of allegations of contract
award and abuse of office levelled against him by the Senate, saying his
job description does not include award of contracts.
According to him, the said intervention contracts in the north-east
were awarded by the Presidential Initiative on the North East PINE.
Reacting to media reports that he has explanations to make
regarding how some ‘fake firms got N1.3 billion Contracts’ and how he
awarded contracts to 20 ghost firms, Director of Press in his office,
Bolaji Adebiyi in a statement Friday in Abuja said while the
Presidential Initiative on the North East (PINE) is under probe, the SGF
is not.
“First of all, the Office of the Secretary to the Government of
the Federation observes that the headlines are at complete variance
with the body of the story. Indeed, in the body of the story, Senator
Shehu Sani made it clear to the reporters when he said, ‘Meanwhile,
you should understand that we are not investigating the SGF alone. We
are investigating contracts that were awarded under the Presidential
Initiative on the North East (PINE). The implication is that PINE is
really the body to answer all enquiries regarding the contract awards.
Not the SGF”, he stated.
While he noted that all contracts awarded by PINE underwent due
process, the SGF said the contracts were executed to the satisfaction of
all parties.
“To the real and more important issue, the general public
should not be misled into the believe that the Secretary to the
Government of the Federation has the authority or power to award
contracts.
This, indeed, is not the case. As with all awards of contract in
government, the PINE projects under investigation, went through what is
referred to as due process in public expenditure.
“The contracts were awarded only after the requisite clearances
were obtained from the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP). It is
expected that these clearances are obtained only when all conditions
precedent to the awards of contracts are met.
Apart from the BPP huddle, the Tenders Board of the procuring
agencies, in this instance, the Office of the Secretary to the
Government of the Federation, has to approve of the contracts before
they are awarded. At no time were these processes compromised in the
award of contracts by PINE.
It must be emphasized also, that the SGF is not even a member of the Tenders Board.
“The media is therefore advised, that to report fairly, it
should be mindful of the structure of government, the powers of
functionaries and the stringent processes and procedures that go into
public sector expenditure.
The SGF despite his position in government cannot award contracts.
He is not even a member of the Tenders Board. All contracts must,
indeed, pass the acid test of obtaining clearance from the Bureau of
Public Procurement and the scrutiny of the Tenders Board.
“PINE contracts were awarded following strict compliance with
public expenditure and procurement processes. It will interest everyone
to know too, that all PINE projects were properly and satisfactorily
executed. The beneficiaries have continued to express their appreciation
to the Federal Government for PINE intervention, that in many cases,
has accelerated the return of normalcy to hitherto ravaged communities”,
the statement added.