National Metal Development Center (NMDC) José Director General (DG) Linus Asuquo has said he followed due process in awarding and executing contracts at the center.
Asuquo reacted to a petition signed by 54 NMDC staff accusing him of fraudulent activities at the center in an interview with News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Jos on Sunday.
The staff members, under the auspices of the NMDC Concerned Staff, accused the CEO of embezzlement, misappropriation, diversion of public funds, gross violation of public service standards, and shady re-election.
However, in his reaction, Mr. Asuquo said that there has never been a case where management has awarded contracts without following established procedures.
“The first process is the acquisition planning committee. Then comes appropriation and finally publicity. Publicity of these projects is mandatory.
“After that, we have the purchase bids, and the opening of bids, and then we have the technical evaluation, by the technical committee.
“After a board reviews the contracts, the winners receive the contracts and there is not a single time where I have awarded a contract without following due process,” Asuquo said.
Also defending the charge of awarding multiple contracts to a single contractor with different companies, Mr. Asuquo described the contractor as someone who “is competent, produces results and wins the contracts.”
According to him, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had verified and confirmed that there was no trick in awarding the contracts, so the contracts had to be awarded.
Reacting to the charge that no investigation was carried out during his five-year tenure, Mr. Asuquo said that the investigation could not be carried out because the center was in disarray and all the equipment was obsolete when he took office.
“I brought in professionals to see how we could get the equipment back on track, and the report was that less than 20 percent of the equipment was functional.
“So my efforts all this time were put into the reactivation of the teams. So why would they charge me now, when I’m pushing for a real investigation to take place?
“If I wasn’t interested in research, we wouldn’t have bought the scanning electron microscope or the polishing machine. Things need to be put in the right perspective before starting the investigation.
“I applied to the World Bank, presented my case and they inspected the center, all of this was done before purchasing the electron microscope and polishing machine.
“Very expensive and state-of-the-art machines, but they have not supplied us with the accessories. “We have requested the supply of these accessories, but it is a long process, which could last about 11 months,” he further explained.
The CEO claimed that some of the people complaining about the lack of equipment were the ones sabotaging his efforts.
He claimed that while he was trying to fix the induction furnace, saboteurs stole everything on the machines.
Mr. Asuquo claimed that most of the equipment he found was not working and now that he was trying to correct that, the staff were against its functionality.
The NMDC helmsman, who was also charged with illegal re-election for another five-year term after his first term expired on July 12, said there was nothing wrong with his re-election.
The petitioners alleged that the Director General was quietly and illegally re-elected by the previous administration more than two months before the expiration of his term.
They wondered why the Director General himself issued a circular informing that his mandate had been renewed without the usual announcement by government officials charged with such responsibility.
“The renewal of the DG/EC’s mandate for an additional five years should be denied and, if already genuinely granted, he should be immediately dismissed for lack of ability to direct the affairs of this important agency.
“Instead, he has unfortunately been involved in corrupt practices for selfish and personal gain, to the detriment of Nigeria’s national progress and development.
“He will only commit further violations if he is allowed to return to NMDC,” the petitioners alleged.
But Asuquo said: “My first appointment was announced on television, but I have an official appointment from the presidency, from the chief of staff to my minister, due to my credible performance.
“I had a meeting with the board and my re-election was discussed. Then they accused me of a false process because my re-election was not announced on television.
“If I hadn’t done well, re-election wouldn’t be possible.”
(YAYA)