Falana urges probe into $2.9bn P’Harcourt, Warri, Kaduna refinery repair contracts

A Senior Advocate of Nigeria and human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, has stated that the Federal Government must indict the Italian firm Maire Tecnimont SPA and Saipem Nigeria Limited for breaching a US$2.9 billion contract for the repairs of the Port Harcourt, Warri, and Kaduna refineries.

Falana claimed that both contracting companies, particularly Saipem Nigeria Limited, had caused a “colossal embarrassment” to the government by stating that they had not received a $1.4 billion contract in August 2021 to rebuild the refinery.

The senior lawyer made this assertion on Channels TV’s Politics Today on Thursday evening.

He alleged fraud against both companies, noting that President Bola Tinubu announced in December that both refineries would resume production, but this has yet to occur.

“In this case, I am alleging fraud and the government has a duty to the Nigerian people to indict any contracting firm that has messed up the country regarding the repairs of the refineries. If Saipem is saying, to the colossal embarrassment of the government, that you never awarded this contract to us, then you are deceiving the Nigerian people by claiming these contracts were awarded to us. We are going to ask the Federal Executive Council: if you approved the award of this contract in 2021, how can the company you approved it for now say they know nothing about it? It is a very serious embarrassment for any modern state.

“The situation at Port Harcourt has become a huge embarrassment. Even last December, the President announced that those two refineries would resume production; I mean business. And that was the information given to the President. I expect that by now, those who embarrassed the President to that extent have been fired. That has to be done now,” he stated.

Falana had, in September, submitted requests under the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act to both companies for details of the contracts, which totalled US$1.5 billion awarded to Maire Tecnimont SPA for the Port Harcourt refineries and US$1.4 billion awarded to Saipem Nigeria Limited for the rehabilitation of the Warri and Kaduna refineries in April and August 2021, respectively.

However, Maire Tecnimont refused to acknowledge the FOI request, arguing that they were private companies and not bound by the FOI Act (2021) to respond to the request. In response, the senior lawyer noted that the request concerned public funds paid to the contractors.

He added that the country must invite the relevant anti-corruption agency to investigate what he described as “monumental corruption” amounting to $2.9 billion, noting that the Federal Executive Council had not yet revoked the contracts of either company.

“With profound respect to all the lawyers and their clients, the Court of Appeal has decided that if you are a private company and public funds are entrusted to you, you are bound by the provisions of the Act. So, we are going to pursue this elsewhere; of course, we are going to take it up in court.”

“Concerning the more embarrassing situation, in fact, where Saipem is threatening to sue me for causing reputational harm by alleging that this contract was awarded to them to fix the Warri and Kaduna refineries, my colleagues at the law firm of Ajumogobia and Okeke have also written to me, stating that these contracts were not awarded to them. Why are you still demanding information on the completion date of the contract?”

“I have replied that this announcement was made by the Federal Executive Council in August 2021. After three years, you have just denied to me; you have never denied the fact that this contract was awarded to you. Up until now, the Federal Executive Council has not revoked the contracts and awarded them to another company. Our country must get to the root of what can be described as a case of monumental corruption. We are talking about $2.9 billion for a country that is said to be broke. We must escalate this matter by inviting the relevant anti-corruption agency to assist the country in tracing these funds,” he added.