•We did not approve purchase –Reps
•It went through due process –Minister
•Procurement went through due process, says minister
By Chesa Chesa (Abuja) and Temidayo Akinsuyi (Lagos)
Aviation Minister, Ms. Stella Oduah with her N225 million armoured cars
President Goodluck Jonathan on Wednesday finally bowed to public pressure by raising a three-man panel to probe the controversial purchase of two bulletproof cars at a whopping N255 million by the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) allegedly for Aviation Minister, Stella Oduah.
The BMW cars were claimed by the minister's aide to be meant for her protection in view of undisclosed threats to her life. Some Nigerians have reacted angrily to the purchase.
But in spite of the probe, the minister is on official visit to Israel where she is expected to sign on behalf of Nigeria, a Bilateral Air Services Agreement (BASA) to allow direct flights between Nigeria and Israel.
Meanwhile, Oduah insisted that the procurement of the controversial cars went through due process.
The panel to probe the purchase is chaired by immediate past Head of Service of the Federation, Isa Sali Bello, and has two weeks to turn in its report.
The two other members are Dick Iruenebere, a retired Air Vice Marshal of the Nigerian Air Force, and the National Security Adviser (NSA), Sambo Dasuki, whose office will serve as the panel's secretariat.
The President had earlier issued a query to Oduah, demanding explanations over the car purchase scandal.
Presidential Adviser on Media and Publicity, Reuben Abati, who announced the setting up of the panel to State House correspondents, said it is to advise the President on what next step to take when it submits its report in the next two weeks.
Assuring that the panel will not shield any sacred cows, Abati gave the President's word that appropriate sanction would be handed out to anyone found to have engaged in any misconduct in the car scandal.
"President Goodluck Jonathan has taken the initial step of asking the Minister of Aviation, Stella Oduah, for explanations and that is in public domain and so it will not be right to say that the President is not well seized of the matter.
"Also, President Jonathan has today taken a step further by setting up a three-man administrative panel of inquiry. This panel has the assignment to investigate whether the procurement process, with regard to these armoured vehicles, followed due process.
"This three-man panel is also to find out the purpose to which the vehicles were procured and then to inquire into any other incidental matter.
"Let me assure you that President Jonathan will like to assure the general public that nobody, no matter how highly placed, will be shielded or exempted from this inquiry that he has directed and that appropriate action will be taken against any person or persons who may be found guilty of misconduct or misappropriation of public funds either in this respect or in any other respect.
"Indeed, Mr. President considers this matter very weighty, and it is not true as some people have been alleging, that no action has been taken," Abati added.
Abati also announced that the Federal Executive Council (FEC) formally welcomed the unanimous endorsement of Nigeria's Babatunde Aliyu as the first African and black President of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) at its forthcoming election.
Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Media and Publicity, Zakari Mohamed, also spoke on Wednesday, denying claims by the NCAA that the purchase of the two cars was approved by the House.
The police also on Wednesday arrested Executive Director of the Anti-Corruption Network and former member of the House of Representatives, Dino Melaye, over a protest calling for the sack of Oduah as minister over the scandal.
Mohammed, who is also a member of the House Aviation Committee, who spoke on a Channels TV programme in Abuja – Sunrise Daily – noted that flouting the Appropriation Act carries a minimum jail term of two years.
"I want to say clearly for the records, I am a member of the Aviation Committee and I partook in the budget defence of 2013 and I remember that there was a defence during which NCAA in its budget brought a thing (armoured vehicles).
"They said 'purchase of security and armoured vehicles', it was a lengthy debate and we rejected it, we turned it down and said gentlemen, we will not as a body approve this and of course you need to take it back."
Mohammed added: "They took it back and came back with 'utility vehicles'. When they brought utility vehicles we said yes that is not enough, itemise the utility vehicles. Hiluxes, Corrollas were stated there for the use of the NCAA in their operations.
"And we said okay, we will now be guided by this since we have the items and we have the monies being attached on it, we will approve and we approved.
"So if somebody comes to begin to tell Nigerians that we approved, then I think we need to make things very clear that what we approved were operational vehicles which were stated in black and white – the number, the prices."
As the controversy still rages over the scandal, Melaye was arrested by the police in Abuja and whisked away in a Toyota Hilux van, marked NPS 21280 at about 1.00 p.m. as he coordinated a protest.
And while the protest at the Federal Secretariat, Abuja, at about 11.00 a.m. was going on, there was another pro-Oduah counter protest.
The police, led by an Assistant Commissioner of Police in the FCT, Sunday Olukoya, allowed the pro-Oduah protesters to leave, but stopped the bus conveying Melaye's supporters, declaring that they were under arrest.
Lagos based lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Ladi Rotimi-Williams, who also commented on the car purchase saga on Wednesday said Oduah might have chosen to ignore strident calls by Nigerians for her resignation because she feels the allegations against her were not weighty enough.
He also said since the minister is not a civil servant but a Presidential appointee, it is the Presidency that has the final say on her fate.
Rotimi-Williams, however, urged Nigerians to give the minister an opportunity to defend herself on why the cars were bought at such an outrageous amount.
In her own defence, the Aviation Minister said NCAA had officially requested for authorisation from the Ministry of Aviation to procure 56 operational vehicles through lease financing.
She said the option was proposed to the ministry to enable the NCAA make 36 monthly payments based on receipts from Internally Generated Revenue (IGR).
The minister in her executive summary on the procurement of the vehicles which she sent to the President on October 21 said the ministry therefore granted due approval.
In the summary with reference number HMA/PRES/VOL.1/21, exclusively obtained by Daily Independent, Oduah explained further that based on the ministry's approval, the NCAA invited Expression of Interest (EoI) from all banks in Nigeria for the financing of the said vehicles.
According to her, the EoI was adopted because the procurement was two sided.
"First, the financier would have to be selected before the supplier is determined. This is in line with procurement best practices.
"On 24th May, 2013, the response received from the various banks to the Expression of Interest (EoI) request was opened publicly and minutes of the opening exercise was duly documented.
"During the EoI opening exercise, NCAA got commendation from one of the Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) approved by BPP who were invited for the opening exercise".
She said the Evaluation of Expression of Interests was held on May 31 during which First Bank Plc, Union Bank Plc and Stanbic IBTC emerged most responsive.
According to her, "On the 10th June, 2013, the above three banks were invited to submit Financial Proposals. Thereafter, First Bank emerged the highest rated responsive bidder.
"Between 20th and 25th June, 2013 invoices were received from various accredited motor vehicle dealers during which only Coscharis motors Limited quoted for BMW security vehicles.
"On 28th June, 2013 NCAA Parastatal Tenders Board approved the selection of First Bank Limited for the Lease Financing as well as the Metropolitan Motor Vehicles and Coscharis for the supply of the vehicles. All necessary approvals were duly sought and obtained accordingly.
"Between 8th July, 2013 to 12th August 2013, various meetings were held with First Bank Limited, contract agreement was signed and necessary documentation executed".
Oduah explained that because of the statutory role of the NCAA in regulating civil aviation operations in the country, there was need for the agency to be fully equipped with highly specialised tools and facilities (including operational vehicles) to enable the effective implementation of its statutory functions.
“In the 2013 budgetary appropriation, provision was made for the procurement of specialised equipment (including operational vehicles) to complement and in some cases replace obsolete ones. Further, the fact that NCAA, as the regulator of the industry, often plays host to dignitaries from ICAO, IATA, US FAA, AFRAA, AFCAC, BAGASO, CANSO, ACI and a host of others makes it necessary to have specialised operational vehicles.”
The Minister, therefore, stated unequivocally that: “The pricurement of specialised operational vehicles is duly provided for in the NCAA 2013 (IGR) budget and the need for adopting instalmental lease payments over 36 months.
“That Due Process was followed in the procurement of the said operational vehicles.”
