Zamfara Govt Tenders Evidence To Show Matawalle ‘Lavished’ Billions On Cargo Airport Project

The Zamfara State Government has provided evidence to show that the Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, spent billions of naira on the abandoned Cargo Airport in Gusau, the state capital during his tenure as Governor.

Recall that the Governor Dauda Lawal-led administration had accused the past administration of embezzling funds meant to complete the airport project.

But in a statement issued last Friday by the former Commissioner of Information, Ibrahim Dosara, Matawalle denied the allegations of embezzling billions from the abandoned cargo airport project.

Reacting in a statement issued on Sunday, the spokesperson to Zamfara governor, Sulaiman Bala Idris, said that the response by Matawalle exposed a “blatant violation of trust, opening a pandora’s box.”

According to him, the bad financial situation the current administration met in Zamfara State was caused by the past government of Bello Matawalle.

He alleged that the former governor directed the Ministry of Local Government to withdraw N1 billion from the Local Government Joint Account on October 25, 2021, and to pay N825 million to the contractors therefrom without any valuation. He said this was in complete disregard of due process.

The statement reads: “The Zamfara State Government would ordinarily not respond to an accused, but as a responsible government, we feel compelled to provide the facts following his denial of the alleged embezzlement.

“To avoid doubt, the embezzlement of resources from the people of Zamfara through the airport was just a tiny part of many other acts of theft and financial banditry committed against the people in various incomplete projects.

“It is doubtful that the project’s cost was reduced from N28 billion to N11 billion in round figures. No reputable bidder would agree to a drastic reduction of 61% in cost without a corresponding reduction in the scope of work. This raises questions about the integrity of the bidding process. Matawalle is seemingly trying to cast doubt on the credibility of their contractor.

“Matawalle has claimed that the airport project was financed through what he called ‘contract financing.’ The former governor should have asked before embarrassing himself. It is known as the ‘Contract Financing Facility (CFF)’, which happens between the bank and the contractor. The government isn’t involved at all. All available documents indicate that the contractors were paid using funds from the state government and not through the Contract Financing Facility (CFF).”

The government maintained that the claim that payments were made to the contractor solely based on certificates issued by the supervising ministry or agency was false.

It also stated that three payments made to the contractor were not based on an accurate assessment of the work done and certified by the supervising ministry.

See the documents here.