Mu’azu Jaji Sambo, the Minister of Transportation, has been accused of trying to seize control of a lucrative maritime contract.

Documents obtained by TheCable reveal the extent to which Sambo exerted pressure on relevant government institutions to terminate a procurement process and award the contract to July Seventh Ventures Limited, a company associated with a former governor of Ogun State.

The contract in question is the dredging project for the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA).

After the expiration of the previous Bonny Port dredging contract, the NPA management initiated a process to contract the task to qualified companies through an international competitive bidding process.

Apart from documented communication, the minister reportedly privately informed individuals that his pursuit of the deal was at the request of President Muhammadu Buhari himself.

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Sambo allegedly claimed that the president had instructed him to allocate one of the channels to his longtime associate and former governor.

Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) records reveal that two directors of July Seventh Ventures Limited, who served under the former governor, were appointed around the time Sambo began advocating for the company to take over the Bonny Port dredging project through the now-controversial process.

To expedite the process and secure the contract, Sambo has been working tirelessly behind the scenes, exerting influence to pressure the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) into giving its approval.

Insiders claim that the minister held a weekend meeting with Mamman Amadu, the director-general of BPP, and the leadership of the NPA on May 6. Sambo also allegedly arranged for the BPP boss to visit a senior presidential aide at home to expedite the process.

However, Mamman reportedly highlighted the implications to both the minister and the presidential aide, urging them to allow the NPA management to complete the ongoing procurement process.

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The NPA’s attempt to cancel the almost-concluded process and restart it, citing technicalities, was met with resistance by two pre-qualified companies involved in the procurement process.

They filed separate legal challenges in federal high courts in Lagos and Abuja, contesting the cancellation.

Both the BPP and Abubakar Malami, the Attorney-General of the Federation, advised against terminating the process while the legal matter was pending.

In a letter dated February 22, 2023, the ministry’s director of solicitors informed one of the plaintiffs that the Attorney-General was unable to intervene due to the ongoing court proceedings.