The embattled Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Hadiza Bala-Usman, has denied claims that she had favoured the Chairman of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote to the detriment of another company was false.
She insisted that the decision to award a contract to International Container Terminal Nigeria Limited (ICTNL) was reached by the authority’s management team, in a statement she issued on Sunday, May 9, 2021.
According to her, the insinuation of non-monetary transfer between her and Dangote in 2015 was fabricated.
She explained that the NPA had an executive management team that is responsible for making business decisions on all assets of the Authority in the best interest of Nigeria.
She described claims that she singlehandedly awarded a contract in her capacity as managing director as irresponsible, mischievous, and defamatory.
The statement said, “The report also mischievously lumped the now expired service boat contract between the NPA and the Integrated Logistics Services’ (INTELs), which took off in 2007 with a review of a ten-year extension in 2011 to culminate in an expiration in August 2020 with the lease under discussion.
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“The service boat contract expired through the effluxion of time and the Authority initiated a procurement process in which INTELs participated in line with all extant laws.
“Concerning Onne berths 9, 10 and 11, which the report alleged was “clandestinely” taken from INTELs. Here is the true position:
“The Authority offered these berths to INTELs in 2013 without any contractual agreement even though the offer letter required that the company should pay rent to the Authority for the use of the berths.
“In 2018, the Authority realised that INTELs had neither been making these payments for five years nor putting the berths to optimal use.
“The Authority then wrote INTELs to request for the payment of the arrears of monies that were unpaid and expand the utilisation of the facility.
“With the continued under-utilisation of the facility, the fact that there was no contractual agreement with INTELs from the outset and the urgent need to decongest the ports in Lagos, the Authority offered the berths to an internationally renowned container handling company, Messers International Container Terminal Nigerian Limited (ICTNL) for the use of the berths for container cargo discharging.
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“ICTNL has signed a contract for the lease of the berths with the Authority and has commenced the installation of container handling equipment when INTELS instituted a court action challenging the withdrawal of the offer. That case is still in court!
“And according to reports in the media, ICTNL has refuted allegations that it has connections with Alhaji Aliko Dangote. This exposes another disgraceful fabrication.
“I also note the insinuation of a non-existent monetary transfer between Alhaji Dangote and me during the 2015 elections. As I said when I was approached about this story, no such transaction occurred,” she added.
President Muhammadu Buhari approved the suspension of Bala-Usman, to allow for investigation into allegations of non-remittance of N165.32billion operating surplus by the NPA.
