Civic monitors reaffirms Kalu’s oversight Duty in ₦265.3m Abia project abandonment, diversion
community News
Bende, Abia — Civic technology platform MonITNG has pushed back against attempts to limit the role of federal lawmakers to merely “attracting” projects, insisting that effective oversight remains a core constitutional and moral responsibility in the ongoing controversy surrounding the ₦265.3 million conference and e-learning facility in Bende.
In a statement posted on X this afternoon, MonITNG directly responded to a defence posted yesterday by a supporter of Deputy Speaker Rt. Hon. Benjamin Okezie Kalu, who had argued that the lawmaker’s duty ended at project nomination while blaming contractor Muslac Techno Company Limited for allegedly abandoning the job.
The supporter claimed the company’s owner had “disappeared” and that the matter was now under investigation by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
MonITNG acknowledged the distinction between legislative attraction of projects and executive procurement but rejected any suggestion that oversight ends once funds are released.
The group stated: “It is an incomplete reading of the constitutional and representational duties of a federal lawmaker to reduce their role only to attraction of projects… Oversight is not passive. It does not end at nomination or budget inclusion. It includes monitoring execution, demanding updates from implementing agencies, escalating concerns when projects stall, and ensuring that public funds translate into actual infrastructure for citizens.”
The monitors further asked pointed questions about the timeline of events:
“If… the contractor failed in execution and the project has been abandoned, then the critical question is not only about procurement failure but also about what oversight steps were taken once implementation began to go off track. At what point did the office of the representative escalate concerns to the supervising ministry or agency? What documented interventions were made to protect public funds and ensure delivery to the community?”
The latest exchange is the latest development in a story first highlighted by TrackaNG’s field verification, which found no active construction at the relocated Onu Inyang site along the Bende–Ohafia Expressway six months after the December 2025 disbursement.
Civic monitors have consistently questioned the apparent mismatch between the funds released and visible work on the ground, as well as indications the project may be re-budgeted in the next cycle.
MonITNG stressed that its intervention is driven solely by the need for transparency: “We raise these questions in the interest of transparency and public accountability… Leadership is not only about attracting projects; it is also about ensuring they are completed, functional, and beneficial to the communities they are meant for.”
As of press time, there has been no public confirmation from the EFCC or the Deputy Speaker’s office regarding the status of any investigation into the contractor, nor any update on the physical progress of the facility.
The project, originally listed for Bende Secondary Grammar School before being moved via corrigendum, remains a focal point for citizens demanding value for money in constituency project delivery.
