Reps probe agric ministry over contract for bush clearing, land preparation
By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
Federal lawmakers are investigating an N18.9 billion contract awarded by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development for bush clearing, land preparation, and soil plant lab rehabilitation during Covid lockdown in 2019.
House of Representatives Public Account Committee Chairman Woke Oke disclosed the probe in Abuja and said the panel wants to see the locations of the projects and ascertain their impact.
The companies that got the contract did not show up to honour invitation on Tuesday, which may in turn escalate the process, he warned.
The companies are to “appear before the committee on investigation of contracts awarded by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of roads, bush clearing, land preparation and rehabilitation of soil and plant laboratories video utilisation of funds from Service Wide vote between 2013 and 2021 totalling N18,924,004,359.38,” Oke said.
“During the lockdown of the country as a result of COVID 19, some companies took contract worth about N18 billion for bush clearing from the Federal Ministry of Agriculture for land preparation, rehabilitation of soil plant lab and others. We cannot shave their head in their absence.
“So, we have invited them to come and give us their own side by responding to the issues and show us the places they are supposed to have cleared. They have to take us to the land they cleared.”
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Verification of projects
“We have invited the Ministry of Agriculture and they have made submission. But some of our members whose constituencies these projects were supposed to be domiciled doubted the existence of these projects and for fair hearing, we have invited the companies that got the contract for them to come and tell this committee where and when the jobs were executed,” Oke added, per Vanguard reporting.
“We will wait till the end of hearing today to see if they will appear. If they are not here, we will have to do the needful to get them to come.”
