ReportsNG
At an institution established to prepare the teachers who will shape Nigeria’s technical, vocational and scientific education system, records covering the 2022 and 2023 financial years have identified ₦3,199,386,031.06 in contract and procurement irregularities at the Federal College of Education (Technical), Gombe.
The findings comprise payments for constituency and zonal intervention projects executed without approval, contracts awarded to related companies, payments for training without evidence of execution, payments for services and contracts that were not carried out, irregular contract awards, unaccounted preliminary and contingency provisions, and under-deduction of statutory taxes.
The largest finding involved ₦1,837,204,599.89 paid for constituency and zonal intervention projects executed without approval from the relevant authorities. Under the Public Procurement Act 2007, public procurement and project execution are subject to prescribed approval and due-process requirements, and expenditure on projects without the required approvals is inconsistent with those statutory procedures.
Similarly, ₦899,280,375.23 was linked to contracts awarded to related companies, with ownership or control relationships to the institution or its officials not properly disclosed or managed. The Public Procurement Act 2007 establishes requirements for transparency, accountability and avoidance of conflicts of interest in public procurement, making undisclosed related-party dealings inconsistent with the statutory procurement framework.
Additionally, ₦199,765,888.02 was paid for training contracts for which there was no evidence that the training was executed. The Financial Regulations 2009 require public funds to be applied to authorised and properly rendered services, and payment for training without evidence of execution therefore contravenes the financial control requirements applicable to public expenditure.
Moreso, the records identified ₦133,656,287.88 paid for contracts and services that were not carried out. Under the Financial Regulations 2009, government expenditure is required to be supported by evidence that the goods or services for which payment is made were duly supplied or rendered. The payment of the identified amount without evidence of execution therefore constitutes non-compliance with the regulations.
Similarly, ₦99,888,985.00 in additional contract awards was found to have irregularities in the manner in which the contracts were processed. The Public Procurement Act 2007 prescribes procedures for the initiation, processing and award of public contracts, and departures from those procedures constitute procurement non-compliance.
Additionally, ₦29,209,965.00 in preliminary and contingency provisions incorporated into contract awards was not accounted for in the records reviewed. Public expenditure is governed by the Financial Regulations 2009, which require proper documentation, accounting and accountability for government funds and expenditures. The failure to account for the identified provisions therefore raises a compliance issue under the applicable financial regulations.
The review also identified an under-deduction of statutory taxes amounting to ₦379,930.04. Tax withholding obligations imposed on entities making qualifying payments are governed by the Companies Income Tax Act and related tax regulations and statutory instruments. The under-deduction therefore represents non-compliance with the applicable statutory withholding requirements.
Dr. Ali Adamu Boderi has served as Provost of the Federal College of Education (Technical), Gombe throughout the period covered by the review and remains in the position. As the college’s chief executive and accounting officer, his administration was responsible for the institution during the period in which the transactions were recorded.
