Re: Weeds overgrow 300-Bed Kaduna Specialist Hospital

The attention of Nahman Construction Company Limited has been drawn to your publication of Wednesday October 23, 2019 on Page 3 titled “Weeds overgrow 300-Bed Kaduna Specialist Hospital” pertaining to the 300 Bed Specialist/Teaching Hospital located at in Millennium city, Kaduna. We refer to paragraph 8 of the said publication, which states as follows: “Our […]

The attention of Nahman Construction Company Limited has been drawn to your publication of Wednesday October 23, 2019 on Page 3 titled “Weeds overgrow 300-Bed Kaduna Specialist Hospital” pertaining to the 300 Bed Specialist/Teaching Hospital located at in Millennium city, Kaduna.

We refer to paragraph 8 of the said publication, which states as follows: “Our checks show that the contract was initially awarded to Nahman Construction, a Lagos-based firm at an undisclosed sum but while the structural work on the hospital was almost completed, the complex was abandoned as the contractors left the site.”

Whilst we have no interest in joining issues with the Daily Trust on your publication- the Kaduna specialist Hospital or the contract awarded by the Kaduna State Government for the its construction- as both are currently matters of ligation before the Kaduna State High Court in suit No. KDH/KAD/151/2019-Nahman Construction Company Limited v. Kaduna State Government & 5 Others, we are however compelled by the erroneous statements made in your widely circulated publication, to clarify the following for public records:

1. Nahman Construction was duly appointed on 29 September 2008 as the contractor for the construction of a state of the art 300 Bed Specialist/Teaching Hospital located at the Millennium City, Kaduna by the Kaduna State Ministry of Health on behalf of the Kaduna State Government,

2. Nahman Construction has diligently executed its contractual obligations as the duly appointed contractor for the construction of the Kaduna Millennium Hospital and at no point in time abandoned its role. As at today, our staff are still situated on the project site.

3. Nahman construction was forced to stop work on the construction of the Kaduna Millennium Hospital following repeated contractual disputes with the Kaduna State Government, which we have tried unsuccessfully to resolve over the last 10 years, culminating in our filing of Suit No. KDH/KAD/151/2019- Nahman Construction Company Limited v. Kaduna State Government &5 Others.

To this end, kindly note that Nahman Construction did not abandon the construction of the 300 Bed Specialist/Teaching Hospital located at Millennium City, Kaduna as stated in your publication, rather we have chosen to respect the rule of law and constituted authority, in this case being the Nigerian judiciary and the subsisting injunctive order issued by the Honorable Justice M. L. Muhammed on 13 February 2019 which restrained The Kaduna State Government and all other parties to the Kaduna Millennium Hospital Contract from taking any steps in respect or the contract and directing the parties to maintain status quo.

Our full confidence remains reposed in the Kaduna State Government led by the Executive Governor H.E. Nasir el-Rufai as we trust that the court’s order will be respected and due process followed in the resolution of our pending contractual disputes.

Based on the foregoing, we expect that the Daily Trust Newspaper shall cause a revised publication similar to its above-captioned of Wednesday October 23, 2019; which was published without any direct confirmation from Nahman Construction as to the veracity of all the purported claims made therein; to be as widely circulated within the shortest possible time.

 

Nabil Nahman is chairman, Nahman Construction Company Limited