Chukwu Obinna 
TARABA, Nigeria – Nigeria’s House of Representatives Public Accounts Committee raises concerns over the alleged abandonment of a ₦365 million National Library state branch project in Jalingo, Taraba State, nearly nine years after the contract was awarded.
The issue emerges during a committee hearing on Thursday at the National Assembly in Abuja, following a petition submitted by the civic organisation BudgIT Foundation.
The petition accuses the National Library of Nigeria of abandoning the project despite paying about ₦292 million to the contractor.
Appearing before the committee, the Chief Executive Officer of the National Library of Nigeria, Professor Chinwe Anunobi, explains that the contract was originally awarded on March 1, 2018, to Samsung and Asosu Nigeria Limited for ₦238 million, with a completion deadline of March 2019.
Anunobi says the project cost was later revised to ₦365 million in March 2023 following a variation approved through the Federal Ministry of Education.
“A total of ₦292.27 million has been paid to the contractor, while the project currently stands at about 85 percent completion,” she tells lawmakers.
However, members of the committee express dissatisfaction with the explanation, noting that the contractor has reportedly not been seen on the project site since October 2023.
Committee chairman Bamidele Salam questions the documentation presented during the hearing.
Lawmakers say only the original letter of award is submitted, while other critical procurement documents relating to contract variations and approvals are missing.
“The absence of the contractor on site since October 2023 suggests the project has effectively been abandoned,” Salam says.
The committee directs the National Library to submit all outstanding procurement and payment records and orders a three-member investigative team to conduct a physical inspection of the site in Jalingo.
Both the contractor and the National Library are expected to appear again before the committee after the inspection.
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