The House of Representatives Ad-hoc Committee on the Rehabilitation and Operationalisation of the Baro Inland Port has summoned Adegboyega Oyetola, the minister of marine and blue economy, and Bola Oyebamiji, managing director of the National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA), to appear before it over what it termed anomalies surrounding the multi-billion-naira inland port project.
Lawmakers expressed concerns that the port which was initiated to ease the pressure on seaports and open up inland waterway transportation has remained idle, despite gulping billions of naira.
The committee gave NIWA and the Ministry Marine and Blue Economy seven days to submit all relevant documents, including contract papers, project scope, payment history, inspection reports, photographs, and any correspondence indicating the port was ever officially declared operational.
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Saidu Abdullahi, chairman of the Ad-hoc Committee, issued the summons during a heated heat session on Tuesday.
“We are not here to fight anybody. This committee is very serious with our job. The Managing Director and the Minister are summoned to appear. We want to know how much was paid to the contractor. We want the financial breakdown. Let’s stop playing games. Somebody must take responsibility for what is clearly a scandal,” Abdullahi said.
“This is a very serious matter. We cannot allow a project that has gulped several billions of naira to go to waste,” he added.
Lawmakers at the session expressed disappointment over what they described as inconsistencies in claims about the port’s completion and usability. They queried why a port said to have been completed and handed over would remain non-operational, especially as there was no evidence of cargo movement or accessibility via road.
The Committee agreed to go beyond oral assurances and examine actual evidence of readiness and functionality. The committee said it was unacceptable that after such huge public expenditure, no value was being delivered to the Nigerian people.
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The National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) attributed the continued non-operation of the multi-billion-naira Baro Inland Port to severe access limitations, siltation of the waterways, vandalized rail links, and security vulnerabilities, despite the project’s physical completion.
Speaking on behalf of the NIWA Managing Director during the meeting, General Manager, Ports and Environmental Services, Agbahe Fidelis, said the facility, commissioned in 2019 by former President Muhammadu Buhari, has remained idle due to a combination of critical infrastructure deficits.
