An Egyptian Contractor, Fadi Khalil and Abuja-based Construction Company, Craneburg Limited have defied an order of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court to stop work on the 32-kilometrer East End Wing of the Ibadan Circular road project.
The stop work order was issued on July 4, 2022 in Abuja by Justice Josephine Enobie Obanor following a complaint of unlawful award of the road project to Craneburg company by Oyo State Government.
The complaint was laid before the Court by an aggrieved Construction Company, ENL Consortium Limited which claimed among others, that the contract for the road work was lawfully awarded to it on August 25, 2017 by the same Oyo State Government on Contractor Fnanced Agreement and had since been on site before the dramatic appearance of Craneburg Company on the same project site.
Based on submissions and several exhibits attached to an ex-parte application filed and argued on behalf of ENL Consortium Limited by the law firm of Joseph Bodunde Daudu, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Justice Obanor issued an order stopping Craneburg Company from interfering with the activities of ENL Consortium Limited in relation to the road project.
However, on a visit to the project’s site, our correspondent found that despite the subsisting stop work order, the Craneburg Company has continued to carry out works despite being served with the order of the Court.
Findings at the 32 Kilometers by-pass road revealed that Craneburg construction company is still operating in full swing in utter disregard to the subsisting order of the court.
Contrary to the court order, heavy equipment moved to construction site by the defendants were in full force carrying out earth works.
Attempts by our Correspondent to get comments from the Company’s Supervisor, Mr Atef Tahlouk, an Egyptian, were unsuccessful as he bluntly refused to speak on the issue.
Similar stance was exhibited by the Company’s Security Supervisor, Mr Aputu Ebifie who declined comments when contacted.
They told our Correspondent at the project site that it is only one Fadi Khalil, an Egyptian, that can speak on the issue and that he had travelled to undisclosed destination.
However reacting to the development, the Executive Chairman of ENL Consortium Limited, Prince Clement Adesuyi Haastrup said that Craneburg Company and the Oyo State Government by their contemptuous action against the rule of law on the matter are telling Nigerians that they are above the law.
Prince Haastrup, a former Deputy Governor of Osun State claimed that the incumbent Oyo State governor, Mr Seyi Makinde cancelled the contract awarded to ENL Consortium Limited and purportedly reawarded same contract to Craneburg company in gross violation of the existing agreement.
He said that the road work was lawfully awarded to ENL Consortium Limited in 2017 by a former governor of Oyo State, late Abiola Ajimobi via a Contractor- financed Concessionaire adding that his company had since spent over N7B on equipment purchase and road work without receiving any fund from the Oyo State Government.
In just two months of engaging Craneburg Company, Haastrup claimed that Governor Makinde had released the sum of N20 billion to the new contractor in two installments of N10 billion each adding that the governor’s unlawful action against ENL Consortium Limited is capable of scarring away investors in Nigeria especially in Oyo State.
Haastrup appealed to well meaning people of Oyo State to prevail on the stae Government to respect the rule of law and comply with the terms of agreement entered with his company on the Ibadan Circular Road project.
Answering a question, he disclosed that his company will be ready for out of court settlement in the case against the defendants once the terms of agreement are complied with adding that his multi-billion naira equipment are in site lying idle as a result of the unlawful contact termination.
Haastrup further disclosed that information at his disposal revealed that defendants in his suit are currently making efforts to mobilize hoodlums to his equipment site to vandalize them, pull down the fence and chase away his security personnel from site adding that the agreement entered with his company in 2017 stipulates that the company must remain in site until when fully paid.
He said law enforcement agencies would be alerted on the impending attack on his site.
ENL Consortium Limited had filed the suit against Craneburg Construction Company, two of its top officials, Oyo State government and its Attorney General challenging the unlawful termination of the concession agreement awarded it by the State Government.
Dispute on the Ibadan Circular Road Project began when governor Seyi Makinde on assumption of office, opted to revoke the road project from ENL Consortium Limited and re-award it to Craneburg Company despite the existence of the concession granted ENL Consortium Limited by his predecessor.
ENL argued that the revocation of the contract award represents a violation of its agreement since it had expended over N3.9bn of its funds for bush clearing, compensation to landowners, drainages, asphalt laying, road networks and rock blastings.
In the suit filed before Justice Obanor in Abuja, ENL Consortium had prayed for various orders pending the determination of the case.
They include: “An order of Interim Injunction restraining the Defendants from acting either by themselves or through their servants, agents, officials, staff, representatives or any other person(s) connected to them from further interference, disturbance, trespassing, or any other action or conduct in like manner with the business of the Claimant (ENL Consortium Limited) in respect of a subsisting self-financing Concessionaire of the 32-kilometer East End Wing of the Ibadan Ring Road (Ibadan Circular Road) under the terms of the Concession Agreement dated 25th August, 2017 with Oyo State Government pending the hearing and determination of the Motion on Notice in this suit,”..
In a ruling, Justice Obanor after considering available exhibits held, “This Court having carefully gone through the reliefs in a motion No. M/8903/2022 and having also gone through the affidavit evidence and 7 exhibits annexed thereto as well as the written submissions of counsel,the court is satisfied that that this application is meritorious and is hereby granted and orders made as prayed pending the hearing aid determination of the motion on notice