Freedom of Information (FoI) request to Mrs Zainab Ahmed, Minister of
Finance, Budget and National Planning, asking her to “urgently provide
information on the total amount of money paid to contractors from the
$460 million loan obtained in 2010 from China to fund the apparently
failed Abuja Closed-Circuit Television (CCTV) contract, the loan which
the Federal Government has continued to re-pay.”
SERAP urged Mrs Ahmed to “disclose specific details of local
contractors, if any, that have received funds from the loan for the CCTV
contract, reportedly awarded to China’s ZTE Corporation, as well as the
implementation status of the project.”
SERAP also sought: “disclosure of details of repayment for other Chinese
loans for allegedly failed projects between 1999–2015, the status of
any such projects, and details of local and Chinese contractors involved
in the projects. We urge you to clarify if the N1.5 billion paid in 2010
for another apparently failed contract to construct the headquarters of
the Code of Conduct Bureau is part of another Chinese loan.”
In the FoI request dated 25 October 2019 and signed by SERAP deputy
director Kolawole Oluwadare, the organization said: “We are concerned
that Nigerians are being made to pay for the Chinese loans for
apparently failed projects, and for which they have not benefited in any
way, shape or form. Transparency in the spending of Chinese loans is
good for everyone, as this would help to increase the effectiveness,
legitimacy, and contribution of the loans to the development of public
goods and services, and the general public interests.”
SERAP said it would take legal action “if the requested information is
not provided to us within 14 days of the receipt and/or publication of
this letter.”
SERAP said: “Servicing Chinese loans for failed projects is double
jeopardy for Nigerians—they can neither see nor benefit from the
projects; yet, they are made to pay both the loans and the accrued
interests. The loans should never have been obtained in the first place,
as successive governments should have drawn funds from the over $670
million (N241.2 billion) budgeted annually as security votes, but which
remain synonymous with official corruption and unaccounted for.”
The organization expressed “concern that the $460 million loan got for
the failed Abuja CCTV project and the N1.5 billion for the construction
of CCB headquarters, which may be part of another Chinese loan, may have
been mismanaged or stolen, and in any case, remain unaccounted for.”
The FoI request read in part: “SERAP is concerned that the allegations
of corruption involving the use of the funds and other similar Chinese
loans may be responsible for the security challenges confronting Abuja,
and the limited capacity of the CCB to discharge its constitutional and
statutory mandates to prevent corruption in asset declarations of
presidents, vice-presidents, governors, and other public officers, as
prescribed by the Nigerian constitution of 1999 (as amended).”
“As trustee of public funds, SERAP contends that your Ministry has a
legal duty to disclose details of spending on the $460 million Abuja
CCTV project and N1.5 billion for the construction of CCB headquarters,
to the beneficiaries (Nigerians) of the trust, if and when called upon
to do so. Any failure or refusal to provide the information will also be
clearly inconsistent with the letter and spirit of the FoI Act.”
“If the allegations of mismanagement and corruption in the execution of
projects for which loans have been obtained from China are true, such
allegations will clearly amount to a fundamental breach of national
anticorruption laws and the country’s international anticorruption
obligations including under the UN Convention against Corruption to
which Nigeria is a state party. The facts relating to these serious
allegations require your immediate and urgent disclosure and
clarifications.”
“As a key agency of government, the Ministry of Finance, Budget and
National Planning has a sacred duty to ensure that the country’s loans
including those obtained from China are transparently and accountably
used solely for the purposes for which the loans are obtained, and for
the effective development of public goods and services as well as the
general public interests.”
“This implies providing strong leadership in the efforts to curb public
sector corruption, and to refer to appropriate anticorruption agencies
any allegations of corruption in which any agencies of government and/or
contractors may be involved. This leadership is important if the
Ministry is to enjoy the public trust and confidence essential for its
effectiveness and impact.”
“We would like you to clarify if the N1.5 billion mobilisation fee
reportedly paid in September 2010 to contractors for the construction of
the headquarters of the CCB in Abuja is part of another loan obtained
from China.”
“We are concerned that the CCB building project is still in foundation
level several years after payment of N1.5 billion of the total contract
fee of N3.5billion. However, the contract was reportedly reviewed in
October 2012 from N3.5 billion to N8.7 billion, with the contract
agreement signed on February 5, 2013.”
“SERAP notes that the consequences of corruption are felt by citizens on
a daily basis. Corruption exposes them to additional costs to pay for
health, education and administrative services. Another consequence of
corruption is the growing inequality in the country, where the
privileged few have access to all public resources, while the vast
majority of citizens are deprived of access to public goods and
services.”
“Also, corruption undermines economic development of the country,
trapping the majority of Nigerians in poverty and depriving them of
employment opportunities.”
SERAP therefore urged Mrs Ahmed to:
1. Disclose the total amounts of money, if any, that have been
paid/released for the execution of projects for which loans have been
obtained from China;
2. Compel the contractors and companies including Chinese companies
that have been paid from the loans to go back to sites and urgently
complete the projects;
3. Suspend repayment of any Chinese loans until there are specific
guarantees by local and Chinese contractors and companies that
transparency and accountability will be ensured in the execution of the
affected projects;
4. Disclose the amount of interests so far paid on the loans obtained
for the project which have allegedly not been fully, properly or
satisfactorily executed;
5. Refer any allegations of corruption involving the execution of
projects for which loans have been obtained from China to the Economic
and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt
Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) for
investigation;
6. Ensure that anyone involved in alleged corruption in projects
supported by China is brought to justice if there is relevant and
sufficient admissible evidence;
7. Set up processes and procedures to safeguard Chinese loans and
mitigate corruption risks in the spending of the loans and to promote
fair and free competition, consistent with Nigeria’s anti-corruption
legal frameworks and international standards