Abuja’s mega projects gulp billions, but remain unfinished

Abuja, the FCT, assumed the status of a mega city year’s back, as evidenced by rapid expansion and improvements on all fronts. But the development of commensurate infrastructure for its ever growing population has remained a serious nightmare to the federal government.  Weekly Trust observed that the FCT administration is currently under the spell of […]

Abuja, the FCT, assumed the status of a mega city year’s back, as evidenced by rapid expansion and improvements on all fronts. But the development of commensurate infrastructure for its ever growing population has remained a serious nightmare to the federal government. 
Weekly Trust observed that the FCT administration is currently under the spell of multiple uncompleted capital projects. It tags them national priority projects. House of Representatives committee on the FCT, chaired by Hon. Emmanuel Jime (APC, Benue) recently   stoked the flames as it raised an alarm over numerous uncompleted projects in Abuja.
The committee was equally amazed that most of these projects have outlived their completion dates.  It promised to initiate a probe into these seemingly abandoned projects. The outbursts of the house came on the heels of the disclosure by the FCT minister that N470 billion was needed to complete these multiple national priority projects.
Jime said: “The committee has observed that the ONEX and OSEX road projects are still on-going. However, we are made to understand that these critical roads should have been completed in 2013. We believe FCTA should channel adequate resources towards completion of those roads. It’s unfortunate that we are learning that over N470 billion is still required, after several budget years to complete some of these projects. So, what to ask is: ‘where is the money from the budgets passed since 2008 for these projects’”?
Weekly Trust findings suggest that these projects, which are sited in different parts of the FCT, are mainly in the areas of water supply, healthcare delivery, roads and rail construction, and recreational facilities among others. Specifically, the projects include construction of a cultural centre and Millennium Tower, water dam at Karshi satellite town, construction and equipping of the 220-bed Utako District Hospital, Abuja rail transit project, rehabilitation and expansion of Outer Northern Expressway (ONEX) and Outer Southern Expressway (OSEX) among others. They have also been recurring items on the FCT budget for years now. 
But the Jime committee blamed the neglect of Abuja mega projects to poor release of funds from the National Budget Office (NBO). It added that the problem was compounded by the meagre amounts of budget ceiling allowed the FCT year after year.  Senator Mohammed also complained of poor release of even budgeted funds to the ministry. 
“The committee notes that the notional priority budget of the FCT had been shrinking at alarming rate. In 2008, it was N19 billion, in 2013 N55 billion. But this year, a paltry N30 billion has been appropriated,” Jime lamented. 
Also, while presenting the 2014 budget estimates to the National Assembly, Mohammed decried the FCT ministry’s budget bar of N30 billion for 2014. In addition, he disclosed that out of the N57 billion budgeted in 2013, only about N33 billion was released.
“The present envelop of N30.410 billion is grossly inadequate to fund the 17 national priority projects that require the sum of N470.3 billion to be rolled off.  Most of these projects were to be rolled off by the year 2011. The implication of this ceiling is that these projects would either be underfunded or abandoned,” the minister said.
But efforts by Weekly Trust to obtain details about the national priority projects and contracts, such as the amounts so far expended, were not fruitful. More than two months after a letter was written to the FCT minister to this effect through the FCTA information officer and contact person, Freedom of Information (FOI) in-house committee of the FCTA, only records of four, out of the 11 listed projects were released.
Specifically, the letter sought the disclosure of year of award of each of the contracts/projects; the initial cost or sum, including reviews if any; yearly amounts paid to contractors;  the outstanding payments  and  level of completion or stage of work on each of the contracts/projects.
However, much as the FCTA appeared hesitant in disclosing the state of the projects, the report of the senate joint committees on the FCT and appropriation on the 2012 FCT statutory appropriation bill, presented by the chairman of the senate committee on the FCT, Mr. Smart Adeyemi (PDP, Kogi West), also gave an insight into the state of projects in Abuja. It indicated that out of the N20.3 billion budgeted for the expansion of Airport Road (LOTS 1&2) project in 2011, N18.767bn has been paid. Although, a sizeable amount of the contract sum has been paid, as disclosed by the senate committee, the road is still under construction in 2014, several years after the contract was awarded.
An Abuja resident, Alhaji Kazeem Yusuf, told Weekly Trust recently that: “The Abuja airport road contract started since 2008 under Senator Adamu Aliero as FCT minister  and is yet to be completed, years after. And the road is less than 50 kilometres.”
Investigations unveiled that most of the projects for which the FCT administration is demanding a fresh N470 billion allocation for their completion have gulped billions of naira over the years. However, it was observed that progress of work on some of the projects is not commensurate with funds released to the contractors these past years.
For instance, contract for the construction and equipping of the 220-bed Utako District Hospital, awarded at the cost of about N4.263 billion to M/S PPC Medical Systems has stagnated.
According to a document released to Weekly Trust on request from the FCTA’s health and human services department and signed by the deputy director (works), Arc. Fausat Ibikunle, work on the project has been stalled, after about N2.222 billion, more than half of the total contract sum, has been paid to the contractor. 
“Work is presently suspended, pending outcome of ministerial committee’s evaluation”, Ibikunle stated in his reply.
When Weekly Trust visited the hospital, it looked like a deserted graveyard as the surroundings are overgrown by weeds. But FCT minister disclosed in his appraisal of 2013 budget that out of N1 billion budgeted for the hospital in 2013, only about N95 million was spent. 
But in spite of the billions it has swallowed so far, Weekly Trust observed that none of the five buildings at the Utako District Hospital has been completed. The biggest building is merely plastered and roofed, while others are still at the building stage, for a project that began 10 years ago. The FCTA is requesting for N450.64 million in 2014 to continue with the project.
Investigations also showed that sometime back, part of the structure at the hospital collapse, compelling the FCTA to put a stop to construction work there. Presently, it is not certain when work on the project would resume.
Additionally, a signboard in front of the place reads: Project – Construction and Equipping of Utako District Hospital. Client – Federal Capital Territory Administration, Health and Human Services Secretariat. Consultant- Archcon Consortium. Main Contractor – P.P.C. Ltd. 8 Kofo Abayomi Street Victoria Island Lagos.
But many express doubts about the competence of the company, P.P.C. Ltd, handling the contract, as it reportedly has a reputation for hospital equipping, not construction. The company’s profile reads: “PPC (formerly Philips Projects Centre) is a wholly Nigerian-owned limited liability technology company. Its core activities are primarily geared towards providing specialised integrated solutions and services for key engineering solutions in ICT, Energy/Power, medical and other utility sectors.”
“We had been to Utako District Hospital and upon inspection, noticed defects in architectural design of the building. One of the members raised a query and today, part of the building has collapsed, with billions of naira going down the drain,” the Jime committee had lamented.
Similarly, findings from the FCTA indicated that contract for the design and construction of a dam treatment, plants, tanks and other bulk water supply to Karshi satellite town was awarded on June 10, 2013 to SCC Nigeria. The contract sum was pegged at over N19.438 billion and the FCTA has released over N3.501 billion to the company.
However, when Weekly Trust visited the water dam site, it was observed that work has just started on the project, with digging of the first layer of both the main water borehole and the reservoir. Attempts to speak to the project manager of SCC Karshi failed as at the time of filing this report.  
But this observation was corroborated by the director, Satellite Towns Development Agency (STDA) of the FCTA, Mr. Tukur Ibrahim Bakori, who pegged progress of work on the dam project at only 8 percent. The ministry has proposed about N1.715 billion in the 2014 fiscal year for the project, which implies that there would only be a marginal increase in the quantum of work on the dam this year.  
However, figures from the office of the director STDA and the budget presentation of the FCT minister to the house committee on budget about the actual amount paid the contractor surprisingly do not tally. While the STDA quotes a higher figure of N3.5 billion as paid to the contractor, the FCT minister put the amount at N2.6 billion.
In addition, contract for the provision of engineering infrastructure to Karshi Satellite Town, districts 1 & 2, (Apo-Karshi road) awarded on March 7, 2007, has dragged on for nearly eight years.  The FCTA also awarded the contract to SCC Nigeria at the initial sum of over N11.52 billion. But in 2011, it reviewed the contract sum upwards to about N28.22 billion.
A document signed by STDA’s director, Tukur, shows that the contractors have been paid over N11.39 billion for the job and work has reached 65 percent completion. But Weekly Trust observed that progress of work on many portions of the Karshi-Apo road has not only slowed down, but was still at the preliminary stage as evidenced by earth-scrapping and grading.  
Also, a  senior FCTA official who pleaded anonymity, disclosed that  there has been zero budgetary allocation for the project in the last few years. And in 2013, out of the N4.35 billion earmarked for it, only N163 million was released and the minsitry has projected to spend about N2.634 billion on the project this year.
“We have challenge of finances. Within the satellite towns, we wanted to open Karshi from this intersection; you just go to Abuja through Apo. But this project has been on for two years – all the art works have been completed. We’ll accelerate… even through SURE-P to complete it”, FCT minister told reporters recently in response to questions on alternative access routes to the city centre.
Also, the fate of the Millennium Tower and cultural centre project is no less different. The tower which is projected to stand at 170 metres, would arguably be the tallest building in the country. The building includes a cultural centre and a municipal building.
It was gathered that the construction of the tower started in 2006 during former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s administration and was expected to be completed in 2011. Three years after the expected date of completion, the building is still under construction and receiving budgetary allocations that can hardly move the work forward.
FCT minister disclosed that N2 billion was budgeted for it in 2013, but only about N1.47 billion was released. Listed under the 17 national priority projects, the Millennium Tower and cultural centre requires N901 million to sustain work on it this year. 
When Weekly Trust visited the site, construction work was still ongoing, but workers and contractors declined comments, insisting that the FCT authorities would be in a better position to clarify whatever issues that were being verified.
However, the FCTA failed to oblige comments on the amount of funds the project has gulped and whether the contract sum has been reviewed, the amount needed to complete it and when it would be completed.