Any water project in the south-eastern part of Nigeria is a response to a critical need as the region is known for absence of potable water. Residents of Uburu and Ivo local government areas of Ebonyi State would have been elated to know that water projects have been assigned to their areas. However their excitement has turned to resignation as two years after contract awards, the water projects are uncompleted and abandoned.
Uburu is located in the Ohaozara local government area of Ebonyi state. Located in the community is a multi-million naira water project meant to serve the whole area. The description of the project reads; “completion of the concrete works of the Uburu Water project low lift pump station”.
In May 2020 a sum of N59.109 million was recorded as released for the project. However, when the Dataphyte Monitoring team visited, people noted that works on the project stopped last year and they do not know why.
State of Low lift pump in Uburu, Ebonyi
Only a well had been dug as at the time of visit.
Despite the financial provisions, the state of the project raises questions given the release of funds over one year ago and sparse works done thereafter.
If completed, the project would supply clean water to the Uburu community, one they are denied by the non-execution of the contract.
State of Uburu water project in Ebonyi state (one of the two existing concrete works on the project site)
Ivo Local Government Water Project
The water project at Ivo local government, worth N99.794 million naira, meant to serve the whole Ivo local government, especially the Mile 2 area of the local government appears abandoned.
Despite release of funds, there were only a few uncompleted buildings to show for two-years of ‘slow paced’ work.
Although Dataphyte’s Monitoring team did not meet any worker on site, and with bushes taking over some portions of the water project,it appears no worker had been on site for a long time, the security official stationed to the site said some government personnel visited the project in January.
Elizar construction is the name on the banner erected at the project site, the same contractor responsible for the Uburu Water project.
Ebonyi Water Projects Awarded to Inactive Company
The organization responsible for handling the Water projects in the Ivo and Uburu areas of Ebonyi is Elizar Construction company limited. This organization is listed as inactive on the Corporate Affairs Commission portal.
State of N99 million water project in Ivo LGA Ebonyi state
Although registered in 2017, the organisation is listed as inactive as at the time of this report.
An inactive company is one that had failed to file its returns for at least two years and given the release of funds in 2020, Elizar should not have gotten the contracts worth over N158 million.
The award of contract contravenes the Public Procurement Act 2007 which states that “a bidder may have its bid or tender excluded if the bidder is in arrears regarding payment of due taxes, charges, pensions or social insurance contributions unless such bidders have obtained a lawful permit in respect to allowance, the difference of such outstanding payments or payment thereof in installments”
A legal expert, Barrister Awosusi Kehinde (Esq) earlier told Dataphyte that it is illegal for an inactive company to get contracts from the government.
“You cannot take contracts from the government because after filing your annual returns, you are expected to get a tax clearance certificate from the Federal Inland Revenue Service and you get a certificate of your annual return from the corporate affairs commission. That is when you are eligible to be awarded any contract. The annual return is duly signed by an accountant, a practicing accountant preferred to be a chartered accountant”, Awosusi noted.
Dataphyte made attempts to reach the Elizar Construction company to understand the abandonment of the Uburu project and non-completion of the Ivo project including comments on its CAC inactiveness; the firm has no website, no online presence beyond its name appearing on CACs portal, nor is there any accessible contact details.
Sustainable Development Goal 6, access to water and sanitation for all, remains an ideal for Nigeria and failure to execute awarded water projects only further impacts on the country’s ability to achieve this goal.
Already, Nigeria has seen a growth in cases of Cholera, blamed on unclean water and contaminated food, with over three thousand deaths in 2021. In Ebonyi state, a breakout of Cholera was confirmed in 2021 with deaths also recorded.
Efforts by Dataphyte to get comments from the Ebonyi state Bureau of Public Procurement, Executive Secretary, Uzoma Betty, proved abortive as no timely response was given on the issue after several calls and texts. The ES asked to provide her comments in a week.
Earlier, a Dataphyte investigation had also revealed that unqualified contractors got contracts in a Teachers’ quarters project in the state, with abandonment witnessed as a result, although work recommenced on one of the projects after the investigative report.