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Water
scarcity vs Nigeria MDGs Office’s inflated borehole costs
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The Nigeria Millennium
Development Goals, MDGs, Office has deleted an online tool, project tracker,
from its website days after PREMIUM TIMES exposed how the office spent N154
million to construct a single borehole. The story, published Tuesday, showed how the
office spent outrageous sums to build boreholes around Abuja. The online
project tracker contained details of the spending. The tool, on http://www.fctmdgprojecttracker.org/,
provided details of Abuja MDGs projects, contractors and contract sums.
A
borehole in Abuja averages N1.5 million, but many contracts verified by PREMIUM
TIMES were allocated for over N8 million, with the N154 million project being
the most expensive.
The
Abuja MDGs office did not respond to PREMIUM TIMES’ question concerning why the
page was pulled down few days after the report was published.
The
director of works at the office, known by his second name, Mr. Dalhatu, did not
respond to calls and text messages.
Contacted,
Desmond Utomwen, a spokesperson to the Senior Special Assistant to the
President on Millennium Development Goals (OSSAP – MDGs), said he could not
discuss the contract for boreholes as his office had no authority to dictate to
the Abuja office how it spends its money.
The
eight target goals of the MDGs, set at the Millennium Summit of the United
Nations in 2000, are eradication of extreme poverty and hunger; achieving
universal primary education; promotion of gender equality; reduction of child
mortality; improvement of maternal health; combating HIV/AIDS, malaria, and
other diseases; ensuring environmental sustainability and developing a global
partnership for development.
In
2010/2011 alone, N249.26billion was channelled through Nigeria’s federal
ministries, departments and agencies, “Quick Wins” (Constituency projects, but
now called Special projects), Conditional Grants Scheme (CGS) to state
governments, and Special presidential interventions for MDGs programmes and
projects.
Analysts
say poor execution of projects, racketeering, inflation of contracts, and other
contractual breaches are some of the factors responsible for Nigeria’s
inability to achieve its MDG goals.
Contract
for the N154 million borehole, constructed at Gwanrinpa in Abuja, was awarded
to Zarm Global Service on March 28, 2008. The company has no address, contact
person or telephone number.
Another
N110.6 million was paid for the construction of a borehole at Tungan Nasara
community of Jiwa Ward in Abuja Municipal Area Council. The contract was
awarded to Global And Global Venture Limited on March 29, 2008. Also, the
company has no address or contact person.
Investigation revealed that
a greater percentage of the 1,333 projects executed by the Abuja office of the
MDGs between 2007, 2008, 2010 and 2011 in Abuja communities, were either below
the set standard or abandoned by contractors.
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