We Didn’t Engage in Contract Splitting, NSITF Mgt Replies Ngige
OnyebuchiEzigbo
The suspended management of the Nigerian Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) has denied being culpable of the allegation of impropriety level against it by the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment.
The ministry, while giving reasons for suspending the NSITF management, said some of the infractions uncovered at the Fund included N3.4 billion squandered on non-existent staff training split into about 196 different consultancy contracts in order to evade the Ministerial Tenders Board and Federal Executive Council (FEC) approval.
According to the ministry’s statement signed by the Deputy Director of Press and Public Relations, Charles Akpan, non-existent unexecuted contracts worth N2.3 billion was documented and paid while N1.1 billion is awaiting payment without any job done, all totaling N3.4 billion.
However, the suspended management said in a statement yesterday that all training, contracts and rehabilitation carried out by NSITF received the approvals of the Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, and the National Assembly.
The suspended management of the Fund, which stated this in Abuja yesterday, also denied the allegation of contract splitting made by Ngige.
According to it, “There was no contract splitting as claimed by the minister. The various training referred to were budgeted for in 2017, 2018 and 2019 appropriations for over 5,000 staff nationwide, and Procurement Planning Committee meetings were held for the procurement of goods, works and services to commence the procurement activities. All these details were included in the budget for these years, taken for budget defence in the supervising ministry; it was officially endorsed by the minister, approved and transmitted to the National
Assembly for necessary approval during the budget defences for these years.”
Another allegation the minister levelled again the suspended management was that the project of the construction of 14 zonal/ regional offices in 14 states running into billions of naira was a policy that was done without the knowledge of board or ministerial let alone approval.