Judicial Inquiry Indicts Oshiomhole’s Administration for Breach of Procurement Law as Obaseki Hints on Prosecution of APC Chairman

Governor of Edo state, Godwin Obaseki has hinted that his administration may prosecute his predecessor in office and the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Adams Oshiomhole, after a Judicial Commission of Inquiry indicted him for breach of the state’s procurement law.

Obaseki who spoke when he received the report of the Commission from the Chairman, Justice James Oyomire (rtd) on Thursday at the Government House, in Benin , assured that anyone found culpable, no matter how influential, would be called to account for their action.

“We have been putting the right measures in place and if there are resources of government that need to be returned, we will not hesitate to ask for it.

“Since I came into office, you cannot find this type of breach you have mentioned. If people have to face prosecution, whether civil or criminal, they will have to be prosecuted.

“When you are given a public trust, so much is expected from you and there is a responsibility to maintain that public trust. We want to build institutions and not individuals because individuals will come and go, but institutions will remain.

“The people who have the opportunity of rebuilding the system took further steps in destroying the already weakened system. We shall seat down and thoroughly review this report” the Governor said.

Oyomire said the award of the contract for the construction of the Edo specialist hospital by the Oshiomhole’s administration was fraught with breaches of the state’s procurement laws.

He said that the law clearly states that any contractor working on a government project should not receive more than 25 percent upfront payment upon contract award, which Oshiomhole’s administration contravened.

“The immediate past administration paid 75 percent of the contract sum upfront for the project to Vamed Engineering,” Justice Oyomire said.