By Rabiu Musa
Reconstruction of the Dangote female hostel which was gutted by fire in February 2019 at Kano University of Science and Technology, Wudil, has stopped and almost abandoned.
The hostel, which houses 60 rooms, 2 common rooms, with 496 female undergraduate students, was destroyed by fire as a result of an electrical spark, following the restoration of full current electricity, according to the University management.
Findings revealed that the incident led to the closure of the hostel and there were no adequate on-campus facilities to accommodate all the students which sent them to the surrounding localities to rent off-campus accommodations at exorbitant prices amidst economic hardships with minimal security.
Female Students Who Live Off-campus Recount Ordeal
Mariam Isah, 23, a 500-level student at the University, said when the hostel got burnt they had to vacate it and sought accommodation off-campus.
She said, “Sadly, after some months outside the campus at the popular Yan-kwaya axis, we went home for a semester break, only to come back and find out that our house was vandalized and properties carted away.
“Upon getting the accommodation, I opened my room and found it in a mess. My mattress, bag of clothes, cooking gas, and other important items were all stolen,” Mariam lamented.
Unlike Mariam Isah, Theresa Thompson, 21, said “The violent activities unleashed to students off-campus has been affecting our academic performance on one hand, and put us at a financial disadvantage on the other”.
She said “My new phone, (Infinix Hot 11, play model), and other valuables were gone now as a result of thugs’ activities’’.
“The scariest thing was that the suspected buglers did not break my door”.
“What I noticed was that they removed the glass on my window and made their way into the room. I weft that day because I was left stranded without good clothes and a smartphone to conduct assignments and communicate with my parents and other family members at home”.
Habiba Sani Darma, 24, described the minimal level of security facing the students living off-campus particularly females as unfortunate.
She said there’s a dire need for the authority concerned to look into the circumstances and settle issues with the contractor if any to enable him to return to the site for the common good of the female students in the school.
Another student, Fatima Baba, who lives outside the university campus as a result of the Dangote hostel closure said, that house owners and landlords had taken advantage of the circumstances to exploit students.
‘’I paid N110,000 for one year for a single room in the neighboring surrounding for a small size room’’.
She further appealed to the Kano state government to settle grievances with the contractor and complete the construction of the hostel.
Exclusive records shown to this reporter by the Nigerian Vigilante, Wudil area council revealed a surge in gender violence within the surrounding localities occupied by the students.
The data showed that about 57 violent activities related to gender abuse have been recorded in just two months. The data indicate those female students account for about 65% of the overall data.
A source within the Nigerian Security and Civil Defense Corps (NSCDC), Wudil area Command, who craved anonymity because he is not in a position to speak said, “There has been an exponential surge in the criminal cases particularly around students’ houses in the local government, particularly targeted against vulnerable female students’’.
The source confirmed to this reporter that the security outfit is trying its best in close association with other security agencies to curtail any violent activity that will jeopardize the peace and hamper the academic activities of the students in the area.
Corroborating, Dr. Halima Waziri, Executive Director, of the Forum of Progressive Women (FOWUP), said the rising cases of attendant violence on females, particularly students is worrisome.
She further said that her organization is working tirelessly with security agencies to provide an amicable way to curtail the menace of insecurity in the students’ residential areas.
She called on the government to hasten the completion and build more on-campus female hostels. This, according to her will enable the school to provide maximum security for female students.
The Reconstruction of the Dangote Female Hostel Contract
The Kano State Executive Council via reference number (CAD/EXCO/II/13), on 8th February 2021, approved the mobilization of B.K.I Building and Civil Engineering Company Limited on the sum of N217,628,152:38 to reconstruct the hostel and the contract was billed to finish in 12 Months.
Dangote Female Hostel Under Construction
An on-the-spot assessment by this reporter to the University of Science and Technology in Wudil town discovered that the project has reached an advanced stage of completion but it appears clearly abandoned by the contractor after releases of multi-million naira by the Kano state government.
The contract was awarded through the state Ministry for Higher Education. As the supervising body of the project, a Freedom of Information Request dated 13th October and a reminder on 5th November were sent to the ministry requesting the financial progress report of the project under reference, this newspaper could not be able to obtain financial details of the contract in question from the ministry, got information explaining the amount of money allocated for the entire project.
SignPost of the Dangote Female Hostel
In the information obtained, the ministry claimed that the project status was 65%, but this reporter could not independently verify the ministry’s claim because of the withheld financial progress report to ascertain the level the contractor should have reached based on the money received from the Kano state government.
Information request sent to the B.K.I Building and Civil Engineering Company Limited via their official email obtained from sources (bkilimited@yahoo.com), failed to provide the financial progress report of the contract.
The company declined to comment on the status of the contract expenditures, rather directing the reporter to the Ministry for Higher Education to obtain the necessary information.
In addition, the company failed to explain to the reporter why it could not provide the financial progress report for careful scrutiny.
Similarly, In a separate contract, the Kano state government approved the sum of N25,176,308,00 million for the construction of a clinic/sickbay at Ganduje Gifted Academy in the Dawakin Tofa area council of the state.
The contract, awarded to Ngaloma Construction Company Limited which was billed to have been completed in May 2021 was obviously abandoned.
Ganduje Gifted Academy
The Ganduje Gifted Academy has not been put to use since its establishment in November 2020. The school was billed to admit five brilliant children after completion from each of the 44 local government areas of the state.
According to the immediate past commissioner of education, Mal. Muhammad Sanusi Kiru, the school will also award 2 slots to each of the 19 northern states.
A visit to the Ganduje community paints an agonizing experience as this newspaper discovered that the school was bushy with leaky roofs.
A block building in the Ganduje Academy
Similarly, this reporter observed that millet was planted in the compound, while weeds had taken over some part of the surroundings which now serves as an abode to deadly reptiles posing a significant threat to the neighboring communities.
This reporter also discovered that some residents in the surrounding localities capitalized on the abandoned structures to be fetching water from the tap attached to one of the school buildings that has been left unused.
Consumables drugs, Office furniture, and Other Accessories Missing in the Non-operational clinic
The sum of N16,021,700,00 million was awarded to the Sight Boost Clinic and General Services Limited, for the procurement of the clinic equipment, instruments, consumables essential drugs, office furniture, and accessories, according to the document obtained from the Bureau of Public Procurement.
An exclusive document obtained from the state Bureau of Public Procurement revealed that the state ministry of education said the contract was successfully executed.
Leaky roofs and empty structures at Ganduje Gifted
However, a tour of the surrounding of the school, including the nonfunctional structure of the clinic under reference, revealed that all the alleged provisions of office equipment, consumables drugs, sick beds, and other medical essentials could not be found.
Freedom of Information Request dated 12-10-2022, sent to the Ministry of Education for details on the contract could not attract a response at the time of compiling this report.
How Public Procurement Act 2007 was violated in the award of contracts to some companies
In gross violation of the Procurement Act 2017, an investigation revealed that inactive companies on the Corporate Affairs Commission website were awarded contracts by the Kano state government.
The Act states that “A bidder may have its bid or tender excluded if the bidder is in arrears regarding payment of due taxes, charges, pensions or social insurance contributions unless such bidders have obtained a lawful permit in respect to allowance, the difference of such outstanding payments or payment thereof in installments”.
An inactive company is one that has failed to file financial returns for at least two years and so no company listed as inactive by the Corporate Affairs Commission should be awarded the contract by any government.
The companies not listed or indicated inactive on the Corporate Affairs Commission portal are not eligible for contracts from the government.
This raises questions on how the B.I.K Building and Civil Engineering Company Limited, Sight Boost Clinic and General Services Limited, and Ngaloma Construction Company Limited were found eligible for the contracts by the Kano state government.
A public search on the Corporate Affairs Commission, C.A.C, website could not find B.I.K Building and Civil Engineering Company Limited.
Also, another check at the Corporate Affairs Commission website indicates that the Sight Boost Clinic and General Services Limited was registered with the number, 1524704 on 13, September 2018 with a registered address at N0.1 Iyaka Road, Kano.
After an on-the-spot visit by this reporter to the address provided by the company at No.1 Iyaka Road the company’s traces could not be found. The No.1 Iyaka road in Kano is a house of the Islamic Foundation of Nigeria.
However, the status of Ngaloma Construction Company Ltd is unknown according to Corporate Affairs Commission’s website and NG-Check.com.
Kano State Bureau of Public Procurement Reacts
Reacting to this development, a source within the Kano state Bureau of Public Procurement said all companies must be subjected to verification before approval of non-objection or otherwise is given to the ministries before the award of a contract.
The source stated this in a phone conversation with this reporter.
He said it’s the responsibility of the supervising ministries to provide information on the financial progress of each contact, not the Bureau of Public Procurement.
This publication is produced with support from the Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism (WSCIJ) through Stallion Times under the Collaborative Media Engagement for Development Inclusivity and Accountability Project (CMEDIA) funded by the MacArthur Foundation.
