AMCON tackles Power Ministry over N1.68 billion payment to UK firm

The Assets Management Company of Nigeria (AMCON) has enlisted the help of anti-graft agencies to investigate top officials of the Federal Ministry of Power for paying N1.68 billion to a UK Firm, Rockson International Group Limited whose parent company in Nigeria is currently indebted to the Federal Government and in receivership.

According to investigation, the parent company, Rockson Engineering Company Limited was owing the Federal Government the sum of N121.55 billion but Rockson International Group Limited was contracted regardless to complete a power project.

The power project in question is a 215MW ongoing project in Kaduna, which is part of the Nigerian National Integrated Power Project (NIPP), of which about $16 billion was budgeted but only $8.5 billion has been spent since 2005.

AMCON was not comfortable with the decision of the ministry to award the contract to the firm. It enlisted the help of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to commence investigations into the payment.

The EFCC has commenced investigations to unravel why the Ministry chose to by-pass the Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC) which is in charge of all NIPP projects and chose the UK firm instead.

AMCON’s decision to unearth the rather strange payment was disclosed in a letter dated August 27, 2019, to the Ministry signed by Ahmed Kuru, the Managing Director and the Group Head, Enforcement, Joshua Ikioda.

AMCON is worried that work on the power project may be stalled due to the strange payment even though the project is nearing completion stage.

Further Developments: Further findings by AMCON disclosed that the N1.68 billion (EUR4,150,479.71) was paid in six tranches.

However, in a related development, a source from the EFCC said AMCON’s petition was being investigated and the outcome of the investigation could be ground-shaking.

“Our detectives have started looking into who authorized the payment, why normal payment channel was sidelined and why AMCON was sidelined.

“What those in charge did was to split the payment into tranches which investigators are curious to know. We are already engaging in internal investigation of how the payment came about. All those implicated will face the wrath of the law,” the source said.