RCICA Lagos: ₦303 Million Assets Uninsured, ₦7.7m Payments Tied to Regulatory Breaches Under the Leadership Of Wilfred Ikatari – Secrets Reporters Nigeria

Secrets Reporters

At the Regional Centre for International Commercial Arbitration (RCICA), Lagos, a review of its financial and administrative records as of the year 2020 has uncovered a series of irregularities involving contract awards, the engagement of retired personnel, and the failure to insure assets valued at more than ₦303 million.

The review, covering several issues involving approximately ₦310.81 million, was conducted under the administration of Wilfred Ikatari, the Director of the Centre, as at the year 2020.

It was found that ₦3,715,692.21 was paid for a contract without the required documentation to demonstrate compliance with due process requirements. Records presented for examination did not include certificates issued by the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP), tax clearance certificates, certificates of incorporation, job-completion certificates, insurance and pension certificates, or minutes of the Tenders Board.

The absence of these documents means that the contract award and payment could not be supported by the statutory records required for demonstrating compliance with procurement procedures, thereby violating Sections 20(2), 24(1) and 25(2)(ii) of the Public Procurement Act, which prescribe requirements governing public procurement and the award of contracts.

A sum of ₦3,980,000 was paid to contract staff who had retired two years earlier and were subsequently re-engaged without approval from the supervising ministry, which was further uncovered.

The records showed that the engagement letters for the personnel were signed by the accountant rather than the chief executive of the Centre. The review also established that the terms of their contract engagement had not been renewed since 21 February 2019.

The re-engagement of the retired personnel without the required approval, coupled with the execution of their engagement letters by an officer other than the Chief Executive, was in violation of paragraphs 020401 and 020402 of the Public Service Rules (2008), which govern the engagement and appointment of personnel in the public service.

In another case, it was discovered that assets belonging to the Centre valued at ₦303,110,400 were not covered by insurance from a registered insurer.

The Centre’s failure to obtain insurance coverage for the assets was in violation of Section 7(d) of the National Insurance Commission Act 2003 and the Establishment Circular SGF/OP/I/S.3/VII/981 dated 21 July 2008, which provides requirements relating to the insurance of government assets.