INVESTIGATION: How non-existent companies awarded multi-million naira road contract failed Abuja residents
By Beloved John
Road Doctor Engineering Limited, Adafat Integrated Services Limited and Goldenjist Engineering Limited were the companies used to ‘execute’ a road project in Kwali Council Area of the Federal Capital Territory that was never completed for 10 years, Beloved John reports.
When the first construction company visited Bako village in 2015, the villagers were delighted as it was a pleasant surprise. They anticipated the end of the project, which they assumed to be a neatly tarred road and a good drainage system.
The road at the time was filled with potholes and some parts destroyed by erosion. During rainy seasons, it was murky, almost unusable for pedestrians, and for car owners.
The villagers’ hopes withered away with time as they watched the construction stall intermittently, sometimes for a prolonged period until it deteriorated to a more damaged state.
According to residents who spoke to SOLACEBASE, the construction workers cleared the road, poured laterite on the surface, which covered potholes, dug out a shallow waterway by the sides of the road and they left.
While the residents anticipated their return the following week, months grew into years without showing up again. The sand on the road surface was later washed away by rainfall, creating new potholes which made the road more difficult for use. Multiple sources told this newspaper that the road project was abandoned for four years, as no further work was carried out on the road until 2019.
Delay
The 14 kilometre road stretches from Bako into Dabi and Bobota village, connecting three neighbouring communities. It is called the Bako-Bobota road and the project was awarded by the Kwali area council along with the Federal Capital Territory Administration. Although SolaceBase could not find total releases for the road project, the chairman of the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) disclosed that the road construction was part of some projects commissioned with N306 million in 2014.
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When N156 million was again allocated to the internal road project to the FCTA in 2019, an audit report obtained by our reporter shows that N55 million was paid as upfront to Goldenjist Engineering Limited. The audit report revealed that the project had been abandoned and the payment didn’t match the work done. It also observed that proper procedures weren’t followed when awarding the contract.
Residents told SolaceBase that in 2019, the construction company returned, graded the road, and built drainages in both the Dabi and Bako axis. According to the community village head, Danladi Bako, the road was abandoned multiple times due to disagreements on finances as the contractor complained about non-payment of funds by the Kwali Local Government Council.
“There was a financial issue between the constructor and the Kwali council so the constructor stopped working. First, the work was suspended between 2015 and 2019. Then in 2019, the company returned to work for a period and stopped.”
Re-awarded
In 2021, the project was revoked from Goldenjist Engineering Limited and re-awarded to two companies — Road Doctor Engineering Limited and Adafat Integrated Service Limited by the Kwali Council Chairman. Since then, there has not been any significant improvement on the road.
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“When the men came to work in 2021, they poured laterite on the road and added stones, as though they were about to finally complete the project, but they left again,” said Abiola Saki, a resident of Bako community. He recalls the time clearly as it was exactly three months after she moved into the neighbourhood, and harboured a little resentment for the road for its poor state. From her shop where she sold food items, she watched as the men worked on the road.
“It went from bad to worse, after that. First, it became very dusty. I couldn’t sit outside for too long, I had to clean the shop and my wares often because of the dust, the area became less uncomfortable,” she added.
Another resident who resides in the Bobota community, Musa Tijani said, “the Bako is a major route of the road and it is so dusty, one sometimes needs to use a facemask, dusty everywhere, if you own a shop or live by the roadside, you cannot sit outside to relax or take in fresh air. It is such an inconvenience.”
Poorly constructed
When SOLACEBASE visited, Bako village from the entrance resembled a community with a fully constructed internal road. The road is tarred and clean, movement seemed easy and one could assume that the road is in good shape.
But after a few steps into the community, our reporter observed that the asphalt only covered less than a kilometre of the road and other parts are yet to be constructed.
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Residents who spoke to SOLACEBASE disclosed that the new constructors also complained about funding, noting that it could only work with the funds that were made available. According to a youth leader who has closely monitored the project, Obadiah Marcus, the construction company only works within the amount they were paid and this has been the major reason behind the delay of the project.
“The work is based on what they are paid. And the council chairman only releases the money bit by bit so they work and stop until they get money again. And when they don’t, the work is abandoned.”
SOLACEBASE made multiple attempts to speak with Kwali Chairman Danladi Chiya but our efforts were unsuccessful. We also visited his office twice for comments but he was evasive.
Non-existent companies
However, a check by SOLACEBASE shows that none of the three companies awarded the contract has an active status on the Corporate Affair Commission (CAC) portal, a development that violates the national procurement law.
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In an effort to speak to the companies, this paper visited the address of Road Doctor Engineering Limited at Plot 22, Mamman Shatta Road, Off 3rd Avenue, Gwarimpa, Abuja, but found that it was a residential apartment owned by foreigners. The residents of the area also said there was no construction company operating or located in the area.
“The companies available are borehole companies. There’s no office in the building, it’s just white families living there,” Cyprian, a security official working close to the block disclosed.
We also made several attempts to locate Adafat Integrated Services Limited and Goldenjist Engineering Limited but could not find their locations.
While construction has resumed as of the time of filing this report, residents fear that the contractors may again abandon the project halfway.
This report is produced with support from Civic Media Lab (CML).
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