Rail Security: How Amaechi ignored government’s directive to re-submit N3.7bn memo to FEC

*Rotimi Amaechi, Minister for Transportation’s rail security memo at to Nigeria’s Federal Executive Council received no support since September 2021

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Seven months after Nigeria’s Federal Executive Council (FEC) had asked Rt. Hon.  Rotimi Amaechi, Minister for Transportation, to go back and do his homework properly and represent the memo proposing that an unknown company be approved to implement a multi-billion Naira Railway security contract, the Minister is yet to do so.

It was learnt that facts are beginning to emerge on how the Minister has refused to implement that FEC resolution and failed to re-present the memo which requested funding for the procurement of equipment to secure the Abuja-Kaduna railway to the Federal Executive Council after it was initially turned down last September.

FEC meeting in the State House, Abuja

According to a member of the FEC, since September 24, 2021, Amaechi is yet to reproduce the rejected memo to the FEC, as requested by the Council at a meeting presided over by the  Vice-President Prof. Yemi Osinbajo.

That was seven months ago, and at a rate of one FEC meeting per week, the Minister had 28 opportunities of FEC meetings to represent the memo.

“But up to last week before the train attack, he simply abandoned the memo, only to be crying wolf now, ” disclosed a top Federal Government’s source.

Recall that during an inspection of the Abuja-Kaduna train attacked by terrorists on Tuesday, March 29, 2022, Amaechi disclosed that he presented a memo to the FEC to procure security equipment to protect the rail from attacks, but it was turned down.

But he said nothing to the media about the ‘shady nature’ of the company he was going to give the contract to neither did he inform the journalists with him at that Kaduna station that he has simply ignored the conclusion of FEC that the memo be redone properly and quickly represented for approval.

Earlier, media reports in The Punch, The Cable, PremiumTimes and Sahara Reporters Friday, April 2, 2022, morning to had detailed the problems with Amaechi’s questionable memo to the FEC.

A source also said that “FEC had doubts about the capability of a company, which was formed less than two years prior, and had no track record of handling a contract of N3.7billion or a contract on surveillance systems. The company was also to be paid upfront.

There were serious concerns also about a conflict of interest when it was hinted that the owners of the bogus company, Mogjan Nigeria Limited, are confidants of the Minister “with no experience whatsoever in security or technology-related assignments.”

The source further revealed that Mr. Boss Mustapha, Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), and Prof. Ibrahim Gambari, Chief of Staff to the President, particularly questioned the memo, with not one single member of the Council speaking in its favour. Everyone that spoke roundly questioned the memo severely, source stated.

Indeed, Amaechi was unhappy that the memo did not have any support whatsoever.

It was after the round of condemnations by the FEC members that the Vice-President Osinbajo, who presided over the FEC meeting later directed the Transport Minister to go back and fix the issues raised and re-present the memo to the Council for reconsideration and approval.

According to a top Federal Government official, “in the last seven years, Amaechi has lost the trust of many of his colleagues in the Council, and he has become a laughing stock for producing memos requesting approval for contracts with “dodgy owners and companies”.

This has gone on to irk the Minister himself, and he has openly tried to fight back angrily during FEC meetings.

However, the source disclosed that each time, Amaechi could not prevail because the questions raised are so critical and revealed clear potential for bare-faced corruption.

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