A witness, Musa Obinyan, in the trial of the former Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, said the Ministry of Aviation awarded the contract for the rehabilitation of Katsina Airport to an unqualified company.
At the resumed hearing on Monday, Musa Obinyan told the FCT High Court that the firm awarded the contract, Al Buraq Investment Ltd, could not execute the project.
Obinyan, a retired director in the procurement department of the ministry, said the bidding for the project was not an open and competitive process, adding that payment was sourced for the project.
He explained that the contracts awarded to Alburak and Enginos for the Apron and Terminal of Katsina Airport, respectively, were captured under two different codes in the budget but appeared in a single code in the procurement department.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had filed a 10-count charge against Sirika for an alleged contract fraud valued at N19.4 billion.
The anti-graft agency alleged that the minister awarded the sums in contracts to Enginos Nigeria Ltd said to belong to his younger brother, Abubakar Sirika, among others.
In the previous case, Sirika was arraigned alongside his daughter, Fatima Hadi Sirika, his son-in-law, Jalal Sule Hamma, and Al Buraq Global Investment Ltd.
The case has been adjourned to March 10 for further hearing.
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