It is no longer news that some officials of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) are on the “fast lane” by always eating from where they work. What is news is that they don’t just do it but have now thrown caution to the winds in perpetrating this act under a regime fighting so hard to curb corruption.
It has become clearer now that there is a syndicate within. This syndicate operating in Finance and Audit of NPA identify their prey through the approvals (documents) routed to them from the office of the Managing Director. Once identified, they keep (seize) the document waiting for the prey to come and negotiate with them. The document could remain there for months if the figure is not negotiated.
Alternatively, to compel the prey to come in person, they will slash the figure as approved by a ridiculous margin and still hide the document, to give the impression that the document is missing. On finding the document after weeks of frustration, the next pain is the reality of the slashed amount as against what the user-department and the Managing Director had approved on the strength of the job or donation.
On enquiry on why it was slashed, the officials of the department will advise you to meet “Oga”, and follows it up with “Go and negotiate with Oga! But the Oga is not around.” He makes himself so hard to get, leaving the prey frustrated always at the feigned sympathy of the other officials who will come suggesting to the prey how much to offer or what next step to take to either find the document with the slashed figure or a member of the syndicate to talk to for brain-washing into submission.
This explains why some bills remain unpaid for close to one year or more in NPA. As we write this, there are bills generated since February 2017 with either missing or slashed status awaiting negotiation in finance and audit of NPA.
Ms. Hadiza Bala-Usman, Managing Director is well aware of this but she seems helpless. At a recent media parley she admitted that some officials of NPA were indicted by a SWISS court for collecting bribe before awarding contracts. She added that the names of the people involved as obtained by from the SWISS company have been forwarded to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
Fortunately, investigation by MMS Plus revealed how they operate and some suspects. A member of one of the maritime women groups narrated how the leadership of the Audit in NPA asked her to come and negotiate a donation approved by the Managing Director for an event that had taken place. At least, she could find her document but some other people (preys) are not as lucky as she is; the subsequent statement would be that the donation is not redeemable anymore because the events had taken place, with the added injury to the ear that Mr. Kolo Mohammed, Assistant General Manager (AGM), Finance and Investment Department, NPA Marina, locked up the documents in his drawer and embarked on a trip without official permission from any of his superiors.
As at time of this report, Kolo had stayed three weeks away from duty without permission and hiding contractors’/customers’ documents in a file under his table where nobody else can find them because that is business.
What a civil service! And he could come back applying for overtime allowance and hiding allowance!
Has Kolo not gone Kolo inside NPA? This is the height of insubordination. His General Manager cannot absolve himself of this mess because if he were not part of the ‘deals’, he would have the moral guts to call his AGM to order! One, no permission, two, the MD’s approvals were slashed without due process of raising a concern not even to the service’s user department. Again, some donation approved by the MD on the basis of corporate social responsibility and other corporate considerations done in the agency’s best interest are slashed for personal benefits.
The syndicate is so luxuriantly corrupt and largely intimidating that other departments are scared of them. Yes, they know them. Their usual ready answer is: “There is nothing we can do; the document has left my table!” So, helpless!
Hadiza has a big fight within; she has to wrestle the monies of these preys from the mouth of the lion syndicate in NPA. Many people are dying in pains. No de-branding can be as bad as this.
We recommend the investigation of this group, and names thrown up for action and cleansing. Sack or send them to Siberia if need be!
#Hadizamustsucceed
