The Citizens Advocacy for Social and Economy Rights (CASER) has urged the Federal Government to follow International Competitive Bidding (ICB) while choosing a company that will implement the International Cargo Tracking Note (ICTN) in Nigeria.
CASER Executive Director, Frank Tietie, at a news briefing on Thursday in Abuja also advised the government to ensure that there is compliance with the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) Act.
He said that CASER, a civil society organisation, was of the view that before giving out the contract to any firm it should be cleared by the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) and the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP), which was never done in this case.
He described ICTN as a very critical service to the economy and security of any country with natural maritime resources such as Nigeria.
ICTN is a web-based portal for managing the security and accuracy of cargo, freight, and vessels coming into and leaving Nigeria.
The portal owners are cargo inspectors with networks in all corners of the country.
They are affiliated with the exporting cargo release agencies and obtain primary information on all export cargoes in real-time.
The independent information allows the implementing country to compare such notes with the cargo ship manifest information provided by the shipping company as presented to them by the cargo forwarding agent appointed by the importer and shipper.
He said that information available to CASER indicated that some people who circumvented the previous implementation of ICTN in Nigeria were still working to circumvent the President’s earlier directive for an ICB to be conducted in the procurement of an agent for its implementation in Nigeria.
Tietie alleged that information available to CASER revealed that the selection of the two companies MedTech Scientific Ltd and its partner Rozi International Ltd did not follow due process.
According to him, the two companies also lacked the required capacity to implement such huge task for the country in view of the economic and security implications involved.
He recalled that ICTN was first operated by a company known as Transport and Ports Management Systems Ltd (TPMS) under the Nigerian Ports Authority in 2010.
Tietie alleged that the choice of MedTech Scientific Ltd, a medical equipment company, was done without any bidding whatsoever, while it partner Rozi International Ltd is a real property development firm owned by two Lebanese.
“It is indeed strange for Nigeria to award such contract to a company that does not have the global reach, requisite technology, cognate experience, and manpower capacity to implement the ICTN in Nigeria,” he said.
“The need for this scheme became very important now the country is facing dire security and economic challenges bordering on illegal importation of arms and dwindling revenue streams.
“Therefore, it is very important that the scheme be properly implemented to safe the country,” he said.
He added that toying with companies that were not security and capacity vetted and without previous experience was not tolerable, dangerous, and extremely fraudulent.
Tietie disclosed that while bringing the issue to the public notice the CSO was already in a Federal High Court Abuja to stop the choice of the companies and the breach of the Public Procurement Act.
“In addition, we have instituted this case to prevent a repeat and reoccurrence of the P & ID saga which was meant to swindle Nigeria of billions of dollars for doing nothing.”
He advised the Minister of Transportation to ensure full compliance with the provisions of the Public Procurement Act, the concerns of the BPP and the Office of the National Security Adviser in the choice of a company to handle ICTN in Nigeria. (NAN)
