NALDA Audit: ₦41.2 Billion Procurement Breaches Flagged Under Paul Ikonne, Cornelius Adebayo

Secrets Reporters

 An investigation has uncovered over ₦41.2 billion in contract and procurement infractions at the National Agricultural Land Development Authority (NALDA). 

The findings highlight nine distinct areas of procurement irregularities totaling ₦41,247,493,250.56, including non-competitive contract awards, contract splitting, payments to unregistered vendors, and disbursements made without mandatory completion certificates.

 The infractions include non-competitive contract awards, contract splitting, payments to unregistered vendors, and disbursements made without mandatory completion certificates. This happened under the tenure of Prince Paul Ikonne, who served as NALDA’s Executive Secretary and Chief Executive Officer throughout the 2023 audited period. The agency is currently headed by Engr. Cornelius Adebayo, who was subsequently appointed to lead the authority and oversee its internal restructuring.

According to the audit figures, two primary categories accounted for the vast majority of the flagrant procurement breaches are : Circumvention of Bidding Process: ₦14,704,662,287.79 in contracts was awarded outside the statutory open competitive bidding process mandated for public sector procurement, and Deliberate Contract Splitting: ₦10,747,603,575.28 in contracts was divided into smaller sub-units to avoid standard approval thresholds and statutory procurement scrutiny. Together, these two line items account for more than ₦25.4 billion in public funds disbursed without conventional regulatory oversight.

The audit also documented significant breaches regarding contractor eligibility, payment documentation, and pricing verification which includes: Payments Without Completion Proof: ₦9,438,803,865.51 was disbursed to contractors without required Interim Valuation Certificates to confirm that contracted works were actually executed, Unregistered Contractors: ₦3,651,544,959.38 in public contracts was awarded to entities lacking verified legal registration to handle federal projects, Ineligible Entities: ₦1,016,834,893.49 went to contractors who failed to meet statutory eligibility requirements under the terms of the procurement, inflated Contracts: ₦600,545,000.00 was identified as inflated contract pricing, Missing Records and Other Breaches: ₦499,975,721.00 was disbursed without payment vouchers on file; ₦339,501,266.70 was paid in violation of the federal e-payment policy; and ₦248,021,681.41 was tied to documentation irregularities in training and empowerment schemes.

The audit findings highlight various of non compliance with the Public Procurement Act 2007, which mandates open competitive bidding, contractor eligibility verification, and strict threshold compliance. 

The report also cites direct violations of the Financial Regulations 2009, particularly concerning mandatory payment vouchers, interim valuation certificates for works contracts, and mandatory e-payment protocols.