I refer to the open letter written by faceless concerned citizens and purported staff of Ogun SUBEB and to debunk the allegations leveled against some key Government officials. It is a testament to the great work of Mr. Governor and his team that facilitated the release of SUBEB funding in July/August 2019 for the implementation of SUBEB projects for the years 2014 to 2017. It is important to note that SUBEB funding is 50% each contributed by both the Federal Government and State Government. SUBEB funds are monitored and have very strict management guidelines, which precludes investment and placement in an interest bearing account. The funds and payments to contractors are independently verified and follow strict Monitoring & Evaluation (M&E) procedures.
SUBEB projects are awarded through a very rigorous procurement process in line with the procurement law, which guides the process of contract awards. In line with this law, contracts for Ogun SUBEB projects for 2014-2017 were awarded to contractors after the successful evaluation of proposals and satisfaction of minimum criteria for qualification by the Evaluation Committee, which comprises SUBEB team members and led by the Executive Secretary.
The project evaluation exercise typically leads to the issuance of Contract Award letters to the successful contractors who have met the required evaluation criteria and satisfied all stipulated conditions. Due to the advent of the COVID-19 global pandemic and the ensuing lockdown, award letters had already been prepared but could not be distributed at the time until after the easing of the lockdown.
As soon as the total lockdown order was lifted to a partial one to enable the state government restart its activities, SUBEB commenced the orderly distribution of Award letters in alphabetical order in line with COVID-19 protocols and social distancing guidelines. After the pick up of the Award letters, the contractors are required to go to the Local Government Areas where the project are located and meet with the project engineers for visits to the project sites. Upon satisfactory inspection of the sites (usually for a new construction/renovation), the contractor then formally accepts or rejects the award letter via written letter to SUBEB.
On the formal acceptance of the Award letter after the satisfactory inspection of the project site, a Contract agreement is then executed between SUBEB and the Contractor for the formal commencement of the project. As can be noted from the above, this process could take between 2-4 weeks and was even further delayed by some contractors due to the movement restrictions during the early phases of the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown. In the case of a rejection, a new procurement process is activated and the cycle restarts.
For the avoidance of any doubt, the Procurement rules stipulate pre-conditions in the form of Performance Guarantee popularly known as Advance Payment Guarantee (APG) before mobilization fees are paid to contractors. Given that an APG is usually issued by third party financial institutions (usually banks) and due to Covid-19 pandemic restrictions, many banks were not fully operational to process the APG. The process of securing APG therefore could take some time depending on how fast a contractor meets their conditions. Once the APG is issued for (usually) 15% of the project cost, the contractor then submits to SUBEB for the processing of necessary approvals in preparation for onward payments of mobilization fees, which are usually paid in batches on a first come first served basis.
For contractors that had already commenced work (without APG & mobilization fees), the requirement is to value work done to date by the project engineers and the process is ongoing.
Payment of the first two batches of mobilization fees commenced early August and more payments are being processed once the subsequent batches are verified and submitted for approvals. It is important to stress that there was never a time the State Government delayed release of funds to contractors once all conditions for mobilization fees or full payments have been met.
Once a mobilization fee has been paid to a contractor, no further payment shall be made to the contractor without an interim performance certificate issued in accordance with the contract agreement. This is done to ensure the State is protected from contractors who may collect mobilization fees and simply walk away without any recourse to the project.
It is important to point out that the assessment of compliance with these procurement procedures is a necessary step vetted by the Ministry of Finance to ensure due process is followed before payments are made to the contractors who have satisfied all the stipulated requirements. The officials of Ogun State government and the SUBEB are professionals who carry out their duties in strict compliance with the procurement law and the dictates of the Civil Service Rules. This administration will ensure that these procedures are followed to enable the state government execute the SUBEB contracts successfully within reasonable time and to the required standard quality expected of these projects.
It is important the contractors understand these processes to avoid any misunderstanding. The general public is also encouraged not to be misled by mischief-makers. The publication is clearly a calculated attempt to damage the image of Government and that of key officials who perform their duties conscientiously.
Mr. Segun Adelaja
Head, Public Relations
Ogun SUBEB
