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Tag: ICPC

  • CYBER CRIME: ICPC arraigns 4 persons for N30.4m fraud

    The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has arraigned Jehu Kwasu, 40, and three others for over N30.4 million fraud, by impersonating an ex-Primate of Anglican Communion, Nicholas Okoh.

     

    The accused persons were arraigned before Justice C. Oba of the Federal Capital Territory High Court 32, Apo, Abuja.

     

    Other three accused persons are Etubi Aliyu, Abdulrahman Muazu, and Usman Abdulaziz.

     

    In the charge, the ICPC accused the four of impersonating Okoh by faking his Facebook account bearing his picture and name; and using the same account to defraud unsuspecting members of the public by raising funds to purportedly bring the corpse of the former Primate’s deceased brother to Nigeria.

     

    The court was also informed of how the accused persons used their bank accounts and that of some of their friends to perpetrate the fraud.

     

    According to a statement on Sunday by the ICPC spokesperson, Mrs Azuka Ogugua, titled, ‘ICPC arraigns impersonator of ex-Primate of Anglican Communion, others over N30.4m fraud, the accused were alleged to have also used some of their accomplices as fronts to withdraw part of the N30.4 million paid into their accounts as well as transfer some money to other accounts specifically opened for their illicit transaction.

     

    It said, “The defendants were also accused of using falsified National Identity cards to open numerous fraudulent bank accounts with fake names of individuals to carry out their criminal acts.

     

    “The commission, in a 17-count charge preferred against the first and second defendants; and eight and ninth-count against the third and fourth defendants respectively, averred that their action of obtaining by pretence was contrary to section 1(1) and punishable under section 1(3) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2010.”

     

    The accused persons reportedly pleaded not guilty to the charges when they were read to them.

     

    Counsels to the first defendant, Sadiq Lawal, and the second, third and fourth defendants, Abdulrazak Jibril, respectively, prayed the court to grant their clients bail, which was not opposed by the ICPC counsel, Sulaiman Abdulkareem.

     

    The judge admitted the accused persons to bail in the sum of N20m each and two sureties each in like sum who must have fully developed properties in the FCT.

     

    However, owing to their inability to fulfil the bail conditions, they were remanded in the Kuje Correctional centre.

     

    The case has been adjourned till May 18 and 19, 2022 for the commencement of hearing.

  • ICPC probing 100 petitions on recruitment scam

    ICPC probing 100 petitions on recruitment scam

    The Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission (ICPC), says its has received and is investigating 100 petitions on recruitment scam from victim institutions and complicit individuals.

    ICPC Chairman, Prof. Bolaji Owasanoye, revealed this at the policy dialogue on “entrenching transparency in public service recruitment process in Nigeria” on Tuesday in Abuja.

    The policy dialogue was organised by the Anti-Corruption Academy of Nigeria (ACAN), which is the research and training arm of ICPC.

    The dialogue is aimed at producing a policy brief to guide the national response to the issue of curbing corruption and reducing the high level of irregularities in public service recruitment in Nigeria.

    It is also meant to assist governments to get the right number and quality of public service workforce.

    Owasanoye said that indiscriminate recruitment had continued to have a negative impact on personnel budget leading to rise in personnel wage geometrically and almost doubling.

    He said the personnel wage bill had risen from N1.832 trillion in 2015 to N3.494 trillion in 2022, adding that “in actual fact, many Nigerians in both official and non-official quarters have expressed serious concerns over the growing patronage system in the public sector.

    “The timing of this policy dialogue cannot have come at a better time than now. This is because there is near consensus across our country and across all political divides that there is a lack of transparency in the public service recruitment process across all tiers of government in our country.

    “This is regardless of which political party holds the reign of power in these three tiers of government (federal, state and local). To underscore the corruption prevalent in the process, ICPC has received and is investigating almost 100 petitions on recruitment scam from innocent victims. The situation festers due to lack of transparency,” he said.

    The ICPC boss said the policy dialogues generally were meant to deliberate on issues that focus on more systemic and institutional improvements.

    This, according to him, will be sustainable regardless of changes in political administration. He added that the concomitant policy brief was meant to offer solutions that were practicable and directly relevant to the improvement of the subject matter of the policy.

    Owasanoye said that the Governor Babagana Zulum of Borno State had recently raised a serious concern that the recruitment into the security agencies (the police and others) had been politicised.

    He quoted Zulum as saying that “governors, ministers and other top government functionaries have recruitment slots who are not interviewed, whether they are qualified for the job or not.

    “These people do not appear to us that the meritocratic tradition in the public service which to some degree, up to the SOS in our counting, is gradually disappearing and very few islands of recruitment integrity only remaining.

    “This is a matter of grave concern that needs to be critically, objectively and robustly discussed in this particular dialogue session,” he said.

    However, the ICPC boss expressed the hope that the policy dialogue made up of experienced, knowledgeable and diverse stakeholder groups across official and non-official divides, would take a more dispassionate look into the problem which was almost becoming endemic.

  • Senate confirms 5 nominees as ICPC Commissioners

    Senate confirms 5 nominees as ICPC Commissioners

    The Senate has confirmed President Muhammadu Buhari’s five nominees for appointment as Commissioners of the Independent Corruption Practices and other Related Offences Commission (ICPC).

    The confirmation followed the consideration and adoption of a report by the Committee on Anti-Corruption and Financial Crimes at plenary on Wednesday.

    Those confirmed include: Mr Anthony Agbo, (Ebonyi South-East), Mrs Anne Odey (Cross-River, South-South), Alhaji Goni Gujba (Yobe, North -East), Dr Louis Mandama (Adamawa, North-East) and Mr Olugbenga Adeyanju (Ekiti, South-West).

    The Chairman of the committee, Sen. Suleiman Kwari (Kaduna North), in his presentation, recalled that one of the nominees, Dr (Mrs) Mojisola Yaya-Kolade, was withdrawn by the President and replaced with Olugbenga Adeyanju, who was screened by the committee.

    He disclosed that the nominees gave in-depth responses to the questions posed by the committee on ways they would fulfill the Commission’s mandate.

    He said that the committee after scrutinizing their credentials was satisfied they had requisite experience, integrity, professional competence and industry to discharge the functions of the position they were nominated.

    Kwari said there were no adverse security reports or petitions against any of the nominees.

  • ICPC tracks 2000 projects worth N300bn in three years, says FG

    ICPC tracks 2000 projects worth N300bn in three years, says FG

    The Federal Government has said that the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC) had tracked 2,000 projects worth over N300 billion, between 2019 and 2021, through its Constituency and Executive Projects Tracking Initiative.
    The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed disclosed this, in Abuja, while briefing the media on the giant strides of the President Muhammadu Buhari’s Administration in the anti-corruption fight.
    Mohammed said during the same period, 326 contractors, who abandoned projects across the six geo-political zones, were forced by the Commission to return to site, to complete projects worth N32.183 billion.
    He said that the ICPC’s Assets Tracing, Recovery and Management (ATRM) project also led to the recovery of cash totalling N34.346 billion and US$1.62 million between 2019 and 2021.
    The minister said the Commission’s System Study and Review of personnel and capital votes of MDAs resulted in savings of N261 billion to the government during the same period.
    He disclosed that the ICPC had also secured 66 convictions from the 243 cases it filed in court, during the same three-year period.
    Mohammed said that the ICPC had played a pivotal role in bringing about structural changes in the operations of the government.
    As part of this, the anti-graft body had helped in improving the MDAs’ budget utilization, ensuring better value for money, improved project completion, service delivery and higher level of anti-corruption awareness.
  • ICPC uncovers 257 duplicated projects worth N20bn in 2021 budget

    ICPC uncovers 257 duplicated projects worth N20bn in 2021 budget

    The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has uncovered two hundred and fifty-seven thousand duplicated projects listed in the 2021 Federal Budget.

    The total value of the projects was put at N20.138 billion by the ICPC Chairman, Prof. Bolaji Owasanoye.

    Owasanoye also said at the 3rd National Summit on Diminishing Corruption in Public Sector, in Abuja, that the Ministry of Labour and Employment and the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, are among government establishments being investigated for illegal recruitment.

    The ministry however said the ICPC was merely “rehashing an old development” which it ought to have completed its investigation.

    Owasanoye added that the ICPC tracked 1083 projects across the country, excluding Borno and Zamfara. He explained that the anti-graft agency ensured the completion of 966 of the projects worth N310b.

    The ICPC boss said: “ICPC review found that 257 projects amounting to N20.138b were duplicated in the 2021 budget leading us to submit an advisory to the Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning which promptly acted on it to prevent abuse.

    “We have so far initiated enforcement actions against 67 contractors and forced them back to site and ensured completion of 966 projects worth N310b some of which were hitherto abandoned.”

    The ICPC helmsman added that there was no doubt that illegal recruitments, unilateral and illegal increase of salaries and wages, procurement malpractices, and budget padding by some government establishments had pushed up the cost of governance in the country.

    He also said the commission uncovered a syndicate within the public service that issues fake letters of employment to unsuspecting Nigerians, fraudulently enrolls them on IPPIS, and posts them to MDAs.

    He disclosed that the agency had commenced the prosecution of one of the leaders of the syndicate was arrested in possession of fake letters of recommendation purportedly signed by Chief of Staff to the President, ministers, Federal Civil Service Commission, and other high-ranking Nigerians.

    His words: “ICPC investigation of some cases of illegal recruitment forwarded to us by Head of the Civil Service of the Federation has so far implicated Ministry of Labour and the University College Hospital, Ibadan and a number of corrupt staff of other MDAs at a lower level.

    “This abuse of power is consummated with the complicity of compromised elements in IPPIS. These cases are currently under investigation.

    ”Our findings indicate that the same malady of corruption afflicts executive as well as zip projects thus undermining government projections, escalating the cost of governance, and denying Nigeria value for money.

    “These maladies include poor needs assessment that disconnects projects from beneficiaries; false certification of uncompleted contracts as completed, deliberate underperformance of contracts incessant criminal diversion and conversion of public property by civil servants, to name just a few.”

    The ICPC boss described as mini-wars, the ties between boards and managements of some establishments.

    “A number of MDAs have mini-civil wars going on between the boards and managements and sometimes within the board. These squabbles revolve around abuse of power prohibited by ICPC Act and unreasonable demands by some board members for privileges.”

    Owasanoye commended the government’s posture against illicit financial flows.

    Giving facts and figures of the commission’s Ethics Compliance scorecard of MDAs, Owasanoye said only 34. percent of the 360 establishments scaled above the average mark.

    Ministry of Labour and Employment however clarified the allegation of illegal recruitment against it by the ICPC.

    Deputy Director, Press and Public Relations of the ministry, Charles Akpan, said the minister, Dr. Chris Ngige, reported the matter when he was re-appointed in August 2019.

    Akpan, in a statement, said: “There was illegal recruitment perpetrated between May 29, 2019, and August 2019 when the President dissolved his first-term cabinet and Senator Ngige temporarily out of office.

    “However, upon re-appointment and resumption of duties as the Hon. Minister of Labour and Employment in August 2019, Sen. Ngige discovered the illegality and promptly raised it at the Federal Executive Council, necessitating a preliminary investigation by the office of the Head of Service of the Federation.

    “The minister subsequently empaneled an Internal investigative committee in the ministry to unearth how 752 senior and 532 junior staff members were recruited without ministerial and Head of Civil Service of the Federation approval.

    “Unfortunately, the activities of the committee were stalled by the then Permanent Secretary who claimed that the ICPC has stepped into the matter.

    “The onus, therefore, lies squarely on the ICPC to break the syndicate which the minister appropriately reported first at the Federal Executive Council and subsequently taken over by the ICPC since two and half years ago.

    “This is the right step instead of rehashing an old development and singling out for bad publicity, a ministry whose minister decided to blow the whistle on fraud as the Deputy Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Salaries saddled with the responsibility of bringing down undue personnel cost, especially via illegal recruitment.”

  • Serving Abuja LG chairman arraigned for allegedly receiving N10m bribe from contractor

    Serving Abuja LG chairman arraigned for allegedly receiving N10m bribe from contractor

    The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has arraigned the Chairman of Gwagwalada Area Council, Adamu Danze, for allegedly receiving N10 million kickback from a contractor handling construction projects in the area council.

    Danze was arraigned by the Commission before Justice U. P. Kekemeke of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court 4 on allegations of corruption bordering on abuse of office and gratification.

    ICPC had filed six counts before the court in which it accused the council chairman of demanding and receiving N10 million bribe from the Director of Remotosh Construction Limited, Aremu Omotosho, in exchange for approving payment for the construction of a double-cell culvert in Paiko-Kore.

    The local council boss was alleged to have committed the offence in March 2018 when he directed the contractor to transfer the money to his lawyer handling his election tribunal case, thereby violating Sections 8 (1)(a), 10 (a)(i), 18 (b) and 19 of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000.

    One of the charges read, “That you, Adamu Mustapha Danze on or about the month of March 2018 at Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory, while being a public officer as the Executive Chairman of Gwagwalada Area Council received the sum of N10 million from Engineer Aremu Omotosho, the director of Remotosh Construction Limited for approving payment for the construction of double cell culvert at Paiko-Kore awarded to Remotosh Construction Limited by Gwagwalada Area Council, the sum you asked the contractor to transfer to your counsel defending you in the election tribunal and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 10 (a)(i) and punishable under Section 10 (a)(ii) of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000.”

    Danze, who had a bench warrant issued on him, pleaded not guilty when the charges were read to him while the warrant was subsequently dismissed by the trial judge after a plea by the defence Counsel, Abdul Mohammed.

    Mohammed, in his remarks, apologised to the judge for failing to attend proceedings on two previous dates fixed by the court, saying it was due to the recent kidnapping activities in Gwagwalada.

    He also informed the court that the defendant was coordinating rescue operations in the area council, and moved a motion praying that the accused be admitted to bail at the discretion of the court pending trial.

    Counsel to ICPC, Michael Adesola, in his counter-argument, averred that the accused was very deliberate in his actions of ignoring court sittings as he was duly served all proceedings since last year.

    Adesola, who also opposed the bail application, prayed the court to remand the accused in a correctional facility to prevent him from interfering and intimidating witnesses, some of whom were employees in the area council.

    Justice Kekemeke, having listened to both counsels, held that the defendant cannot jump bail based on his current position.

    “The defendant who is the current Chairman of Gwagwalada Area Council cannot evade his trial,” he held. “He has nowhere to hide as I give him the benefit of doubt. The application therefore subsists. Bail is therefore granted to the defendant.”

    Danze was admitted to bail in the sum of N20 million and a surety in like sum while the case was adjourned until March 1, 2022, for trial.

  • How real estate is used for money laundering in Nigeria

    How real estate is used for money laundering in Nigeria

    The Chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), Professor Bolaji Owasanoye has exposed how real estate is often used as cover for money laundering and Illicit Financial Flows (IFFs).

    Owasanoye, who spoke at a public hearing on real estate organized by the House of Representatives Ad-Hoc Committee on Investigation of Operations of Real Estate Developers in FCT, Abuja, also said that public officers use real estate developers as conduits for IFFs.

    “Corruption in real estate aids illicit financial flows. The real estate sector is globally recognized as attractive to IFFs largely because it is informal, unregulated and thus open to abuse, shell-companies, use of intermediaries and third parties to acquire high value real estate with proceeds of crime and/or illicit funds.

    He further said, “Corrupt public officers use real estate investment as vehicle for hiding ill-gotten wealth and money laundering. Public officers acquire estates in pseudo names to conceal illegal origin of funds.

    “This is made possible by the absence of proper documentation and registration of titles to lands and estates in the country and non-enforcement of beneficial ownership standards.

    “The Commission has a case in which we recovered 241 houses from a public officer and another one with 60 buildings on a large expanse of land.

    The ICPC boss told the Committee of efforts to sanitize the real estate sector which has resulted in the recoveries of monies and properties for the government.

    His words, “ICPC continued with an exercise started by the defunct SPIP and concluded it from which a recovery of a total sum of N53,968,158,974.64 was made.

    “The figure comprises of N858,938,681,681.06 fully recovered and paid into FMBN account; N1,357,490,846.28 post-dated cheque for October, 2021 and a notarized agreement to pay the sum of N51,751,729,447.30) to the FMBN”.

    Speaking further on the need for strict government regulation of the sector, Owasanoye noted that irregularities bordering on forgery and cloning of land documents, double/multiple land allocations, allocations of lands without the Minister’s approval, and revocation of land titles without due process have become rampant.

    He observed that even the real estate developers were not spared of problems in the sector arising from high cost of home acquisition, unstable capital market, currency volatility, increased rural-to-urban migration, ineffective property protection laws, perceived multiple taxation and poor building quality.

    He further stressed that while some of these challenges of real estate may be tackled by legislative and executive laws and policies, others were strictly based on inter-play of economic forces.

    Owasanoye informed the Committee that investigation by ICPC had shown how the Real Estate Developers Association of Nigeria (REDAN) fraudulently short-changed prospective house owners.

    “The Commission conducted a System Study and Review of Mass Housing delivery in the FCT in 2010/2011 wherein it was discovered that members of the Real Estate Developers Association of Nigeria (REDAN), who had been allocated huge plots of land for mass housing development in the FCT failed in the delivery of infrastructure to the project sites and rather resorted to offering and selling the estate plots to the highest bidder contrary to the Policy. These abuse were hardly sanctioned by FCDA.

    “The estates end up being the exclusive preserve of the rich in society. The consequent pressure on low and middle income earners is a push factor for public sector corruption as public servants subvert processes, policies and abuse of office for private gain in order to meet the desire for decent housing.”

    He called for strict government regulation and an inclusive mass housing policy saying, “we cannot continue to pretend that all is well with sector while the economy groan and our teeming populace suffers lack of affordable housing while shylocks and criminals perpetrate their evil intents unchecked.”

    The Speaker of the House of Representative, Rt. Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, who declared the public hearing opened, called on the government to protect prospective homeowners from fraudulent real estate developers.

    The Speaker who was represented by the Majority Leader, Hon. Alhassan Ado Dogowa, added that it was the responsibility of lawmakers to make good legislation to ensure that hardworking Nigerians does not lose their monies to fraudulent developers.”

    Earlier, the Chairman of the Committee, Hon. Blessing Onyeche Onuh, said that provision affordable housing was critical to government and the people, which cannot be left unregulated.

    She stated that the Committee was set up to correct the growing anomalies in the sector and stop real estate developers from taking advantage of prospective home owners through fraudulent housing schemes.

    The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) Muhammed Bello, in his remark, noted that the government was working towards reducing the housing deficits.

    He added that FCTA was collaborating with other agencies including ICPC to reposition the housing sector, which has started yielding tangible results.

  • ICPC recovers 301 houses from two civil servants in Abuja

    ICPC recovers 301 houses from two civil servants in Abuja

    Chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practices and other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), Professor Bolaji Owasanoye disclosed that the Agency had successfully recovered 301 houses from two public officers in the nation’s Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.

    The revelation came at the inauguration of the House of Representatives Ad-hoc Committee on Investigation of the Operations of Real Estate Developers on Thursday.

    The ICPC chairman said that while 241 buildings were recovered from one of the suspects at different locations within the FCT, the remaining 60 were recovered on a large expanse of land at another location.

    Prof Owasanoye, who did not disclose the names of the affected civil servants,

    lamented the alarming rate at which corrupt public officers were using real estate investment as a vehicle for hiding ill-gotten wealth and money laundering in the country.

    He, however, accused the officials of the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA) as collaborators in the scam.

    According to him, “Public officers acquire estates in pseudonyms to conceal the illegal origin of funds. This is made possible by the absence of proper documentation, the registration of titles to land and estates in the country and the non-enforcement of beneficial ownership standards.

    “A tour round Abuja, especially the metropolis and the Central Area, would show a lot of estates that are built up but empty. If they had been constructed with funds that were borrowed at market rates, I don’t think any investor would leave such proprieties empty.

    “One way or the other they would put them to use. So it is suspected that some of those estates have been used to launder ill-gotten public funds.”

    He revealed that the agency recovered a total of N53,968,158,974.64 after completing the task of the defunct Special Presidential Investigation Panel on recovery of public property in collaboration with the FMBN to investigate some real estate developers who defaulted in remittance and payment of money due to the government.

    He added that the agency had received a number of petitions from stakeholders in the real estate and housing sector, off-takers, prospective buyers and the general public regarding the behaviour and antics of real estate developers within and outside Abuja.

    According to him, “they border on forgery, the closing of land documents, double or multiple land allocations, allocation of land without the minister’s approval, revocation of land title without due process, non-delivery of projects, embezzlement of sourced capital, land racketeering, the use of land syndicates and speculators, the marketing of fake layouts, fraudulent allocation of land, inordinate delay in the processing of land documents for those who subscribe to their projects, general abuse of office, bribery, dishonesty, fraud, payment scams, or the refusal of government itself to pay fair value for acquired land and the concomitant refusal of settlers and traditional owners to give access to legitimate land allottees and other related issues and challenges”.

    He explained that in addressing some of the issues raised in the petitions that were forwarded to the ICPC, they have at different times successfully investigated and prosecuted some errant public officers and their collaborators.

    Such collaborators, he said, include staff of the Federal Capital Development Authority, staff of Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, persons who abused public trust, fraudulent real estate development operatives and other ancillary people who have further deepened the mass housing gap in the FCT.

    He also accused the Real Estate Developers of the Association of Nigeria (REDAN) of working with some unscrupulous persons in the system to thwart the efforts of the government to provide housing for the citizenry.

  • ICPC orders contractor who abandoned N35m constituency project back to site in Akure

    ICPC orders contractor who abandoned N35m constituency project back to site in Akure

    The Independent Corrupt Practices And Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has ordered the contractor handling N35 million Reconstruction and Completion of Civic Centre at Akure North/South Federal Constituency to return to site.

     

    TheNewsGuru.com, TNG reports that Mr David Oluwole, Head, Constituency and Executive Project Tracking Division, ICPC, gave the directive on Wednesday during an on site tracking of the third phase of Constituency and Executive Project Tracking in Ondo State.

     

    Oluwole, who led officials of ICPC and others to the project site in Akure South Local Government, said the contractor needed to effect correction on various structural defects, hence the directive.

     

    According to him, the project, which has been awarded since 2019, is now abandoned, so it is imperative that the contractor, Jubac Investment Co. Ltd, returns to site to properly execute the project.

     

    Similarly, an expert on the team, said the project was poorly executed mainly on the columns and the facial parapet walls, while there were lots of perforations.

     

    According to him, the perforations show that the concrete is not well mixed, and not well-packed, while the exposed reinforcement bars shows under-reinforcement.

     

    “The expected reinforcement bar is not used. The results are seen with the bent columns and uneven sizes which are not aligned.

     

    “The site is clearly, already abandoned as there is no evidence of work for months. This job is believed to be supervised by unqualified engineers.

     

    “My recommendation is for the project to be taken from these particular contractors, or the contractor needs to return to site, demolish the upper part of the building and reconstruct with quality materials,” he said.

     

    Other project tracked included provision of plastic furniture to Anglican Grammar School, Ero Town, in Ifedore Local Government, awarded in 2019 for N2.4 million.

     

    Another project tracked was the training of 27 selected secondary students in Yoruba culture, awarded in July 2020 for 23 million, also in Ero Town, Ifedore Local Government Area.

     

    TNG gathered that the ICPC team, however, was unable to track the Construction of Bridge at Owobambo in Odigbo Local Government Area, awarded for N31.6 million, due to inaccessible roads.

     

    TNG reports that no fewer than 1,024 constituency and executive projects were to be tracked in 18 states by ICPC under the third phase of Constituency and Executive Project Tracking.

  • ICPC commences tracking of N2.1bn executive, constituency projects in Buhari’s Katsina

    ICPC commences tracking of N2.1bn executive, constituency projects in Buhari’s Katsina

    The Independent Corrupt Practices and other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has commenced the tracking of 72 constituency and executive projects in Katsina State.

    According to reports, the projects were claimed to had gulped about N2.1 billion.

    Assistant Chief Superintendent (ACS) Buhari Bello made this known in an interview with NAN on Wednesday in Katsina.

    According to him, the commission is tracking the 72 constituency projects worth N2,100,888,628.37 across the three senatorial districts in the state.

    He added that the exercise, which is going on in 17 states, is under phase three.

    It would check how well money allocated by the government to critical sectors are utilised, he said.

    “The Commission is focusing on education, health, agriculture, water resources, power, roads and also empowerment.

    “The first phase of the exercise was held in 2019 in 12 states and the FCT, while the second was in 2020 across 16 states,” the official disclosed.

    “The previous phases led to the recovery of assets worth billions of Naira to the government, return of equipment to communities for whom they were meant.

    “Also, about 300 contractors returned to sites and completed hitherto shoddily done or abandoned projects.

    “The exercise led to the revelation that some projects were excellently and completely executed,” Bello explained.

    TheNewsGuru.com, TNG reports that Katsina is President Muhammadu Buhari’s home state.