OPERATION RESCUE BAYELSA: ON THE FRAUD AT IGBOGENE-AIT ROAD AND THE TOMBIA ROUNDABOUT SANDFILLING CONTRACT FRAUD

A Community based organization in Bayelsa State – code named “Operation Rescue Bayelsa” has claimed that Bayelsa State is now being run like a mafia paradise reminiscent of the days of Alfonse Al-Capone in Chicago. The spokesman of the group Mr. Tonte Wariowei expressed his worry about the executive wrecklessness and fraud in Bayelsa State since 2010 till date.

He dropped the hint that Bayelsans were expecting that the Tombia Round About would warehouse a state-of-the-art flyover as earlier planned by the immediate past administration.

He bemoaned the humongous amount of money allocated to the sandfilling work, which was directly awarded to the office of the Deputy Governor of the State against the public procurement Act. The said sandfilling contract was awarded at a mouth watering sum of State at the cost of Five Hundred Million N500, 000.000.) Naira only.

A sandfilling expert Engr. Samuel Yemoah who works for a construction company in Warri said the job could have been done at the cost of Thirty million naira ( N30million) Naira. He lamented the over-invoicing of the job and explains why Bayelsa State is not developing as fast as other States created along with it.

The sand filling contract was said to have been rewarded to another contractor at the sum of O fifty million N50, 000,000.) naira only. By this token, the office of the Deputy Governor made a cool cash of Four Hundred and Fifty Thousand Naira ( N450,000, 00) as profit without working.

“Operation Rescue Bayelsa” had on Thursday 4th of March brought in Human Rights Groups including Amnesty International to look at some contracts with the same problem of over-invoicing in Kaiama, Yenagoa and other areas in the State.

The Group disclosed that the Commissioner for Works in the immediate past administration collected money twice for two bridges along the Igbogene -AIT road. The monies collected included: N1. 8 billion Naira and N1.2 billion respectively. After collecting a whopping N3billion, the so called bridges were not constructed until the end of the Administration. In the eyes of the anti-trade agencies, this action is money laundry.

The rights groups have since collected relevant documents and left for Port Harcourt where they will submit their reports to the EFCC office on the 5th of March, 2021.

Operation Rescue Bayelsa calls this action fraudulent and has called on the EFCC fir a thorough investigation and possible prosecution of the people responsible.

Operation Rescue Bayelsa promised that any matter related to financial crimes committed in the past 12 years will be well documented and investigated by the EFCC, Mr. Vaghoun Kaloum of the Amnesty International added.