Oshiomhole revokes PDP chieftain’s contract, orders refund
From TONY OSAUZO, Benin
Monday, January 19, 2009
Comrade Adams Oshiomhole
Photo: Sun News Publishing
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Edo State governor, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, peeved at the substandard materials used in the construction of the General Hospital in Ewohimi, Esan South East Local Government Area of the state, has revoked the N98 million contract, awarded to former Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) state chairman, Prince Solomon Aguele and ordered that money already paid for project be refunded to government coffers immediately.

The Governor who revoked the contract after inspecting the project, also told the supervising engineer to contact the contractor in his own interest to return the sum of N34 million being the total sum of money paid him since the contract was awarded.

The governor, who visited the site after a reception organized in his honour by the people of Ewohimi who are also his in-laws, wondered how people did shoddy jobs and the supervisory ministry issued bogus certificates for the completion of such jobs.
Incidentally, the contractor, Prince Aguele hails from Ewohimi. So also is the supervisor who said he graduated from the University of Benin Law Faculty.

An apparently furious Oshiomhole after examining the quality of materials used for the job, while speaking to the contractor and the supervisor thundered: “Even my grandfather’s family mud house is stronger than this and you people from this community are part of this fraud? Is this what you will do for a community like yours? What is your background; Lawyer? As a lawyer, you know the meaning of agreement and specification? If you do this for your community, what will you do for other community?
“Look at the poor job. Profit already built into it and you are part of this fraud? Ask the contractor to return the money; there is no compromise at all.”

While addressing the ministry engineer handling the project, the governor said: “Is this job ok by you? On what basis are you supervising this job? You can only remain at work if you earn it. I am ready to dismiss anybody who is not ready to work and engage competent hands who are ready to work.
“Is this thing ok, engineer?,” pointing and breaking pieces of block with his hands.

“Money is spent and building collapses. Have you not heard of collapsed building arising from substandard materials? Those bad days are gone now that I am the governor. Why do you people deceive the community? When did Aguele become civil engineer to design this project?
“If you want to do bad job go far; not in your community. Government has given you hospital, look at it now. Tell the contractor to return the money for this contract in his own interest”, the governor ordered.
According to him; “We intend to ensure that there is no reason why a man who steals a goat and a secondary pupil who robs another guy of N5000 is sent to Oko Prisons and those who stole N98 million in the name of executing project go free. They must be punished.

“And when we start punishing them, let nobody say we are persecuting them because each day people steal public funds and run away and nothing happens, they are encouraging other people to resort to more stealing.”

Commenting on the Ewohimi-Ewatto-Ohordua project executed by the Osunbor administration, the governor also disclosed that the sum of N620 million was already expended out of the N1.3 billion budgeted before it was abandoned.

“We have to measure this figure because sometimes only half of the truth is told to our people. If money is judiciously spent on projects beneficial to our people, some of the cries that are carefully and eloquently presented to us would have been addressed by now.”

anyone voting for pdp is as guilty as these men