The Senate suddenly wakes up from it's long self-induced slumber. On Tuesday it directed five committees to probe the concessioning. Should we cheer? Hardly.
A railway project without competitive input from the world leader in railway infrastructural work, the Chinese, must be fishy to say the least. That concession to GE should not just be probed. It should be thrown out.
What's the hurry? We have wasted four decades and did almost nothing to develop our railways, but for the little achieved by Pres Jonathan in his final hurrah. Why then should the government regulatory agencies shackled with the responsibilities over the issues at hand be brusquely shunted aside, TO SAVE TIME! Really? This is most disingenuous to say the least. What is an extra one year in a project with a 25 to 30year horizon? As we speak, the average FG landmark project is behind schedule by 5years. That includes many that are unencumbered by a contentious agreement or contractual disputes. So, who is fooling who?
According to the report, the office of the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) also warned the ministry of transportation against backdoor concessioning because of the procurement laws. Was anyone listening?
Meanwhile, the BPP has been directed to issue a “certificate of no objection” as part of the fast-track approach. By who? Note that the key word here is DIRECTED. According to the law, nobody directs the BPP. Has Pres Buhari now decided, as most of his detractors and critics suspect, to run a one man administration? Like during the OBJ reign, the Senate and House of Reps have their job cut out for them. Sitting on the fence is not an option. Feigning indifference also implies criminal complicity.
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