A member of the House of Representatives has faulted his colleague, Golu Timothy (Plateau PDP), on the alleged irregularities in the implementation of the Centenary City project.
Mr. Timothy had criticized the handling of the Abuja Centenary City Project embarked upon by the Goodluck Jonathan administration, calling for a probe of the project.
However, the member who pleaded anonymity saying he would only speak officially on the issues at Plenary, expressed concern over what he described as the desperation of some of his colleagues “bring back to life a dead matter”.
The federal lawmaker, faulted the Wednesday’s resolution by the House that the project be probed, accusing his colleague of vested interest.
The honorable member said the committee handling the matter was made to look cheap and uninformed by not taking the trouble to get some basic facts about the Centenary Project.
“The worry now it that the House of Representatives Committee on Federal Capital Territory (FCT) is already looking ridiculous, setting the stage for a bigger query regarding how the National Assembly would look when it finally emerges that it was actually a former Minister of the FCT, who is behind the new antics of Golu and a few lawmakers,” the lawmaker lamented.
There are indication that the Senate and the leadership of the House might be watching to see how those who allowed themselves to be induced to embark of this venture by the embattled former minister would pull it through.
Considering that the Senate has already held an elaborate Public Hearing on the Centenary City Project and written a two-week old report on it with all material facts on the project are before the National Assembly, it was not clear at press time how the former minister and his co-travellers would sort themselves out.
A source close to one of the promoters of the Centenary City, insisted on Thursday that because the Project is a private investment, the Federal Government has actually not spent a dime on it.”
Indeed, not a few lawmakers, including the leadership of the House, were confounded by Golu`s claim that “the government has spent billions of naira and lost thousands of hectares of land” on it.
Similarly, Golu`s assertion that the project is being executed “without regard to extant regulations and guidelines” raised even more anger, being that no specific laws were violated and all due compensation were paid by Centenary City and on time.
“Most honorable members have no doubt, however, that the Centenary City Project, which was embarked on by the last administration as one of the Legacy Projects to mark the 100 years anniversary of the amalgamation of Nigeria is too legally stable to be affected by the antics of a few desperate colleagues.”
