The House of Representatives on Thursday mandated its Committee on ICT to investigate the status of implementation of Phase 1 of the project including a forensic audit on relevant transactions for the purpose of executing the National Information Communications Technology Infrastructure Backbone (NICTIB) of projects
It also urged the Galaxy Backbone Limited and Ministry of Finance to immediately halt all certificates of completion and payments, respectively, in lieu of the project, pending the completion of the investigation by the Committee.
The resolutions followed the consideration of a motion on “Need to Investigate the Execution of the MOU between Galaxy Backbone and the Chinese Government for Fibre Infrastructure Across the Country”, brought by Hon. Mzondu Benjamin Bem, (PDP, Benue).
Presenting the motion, Hon. Mzondu noted that Nigeria’s Galaxy Backbone Limited, an agency under the Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with China’s Huawei Technology Limited in 2018 to provide Fiber Infrastructure under the National Information Communications Technology Infrastructure Backbone, (NICTIB) 1 and 2 Projects.
He also noted that, following the Memorandum of Understanding, Huawei Technology Limited is expected to design, manufacture and deploy the kit that controls Data movement across all Ministries, Departments and Agencies in the country.
“The House is aware that it is part of the agreement, the relevant Committee of the House and the National Assembly at large approved about $475million credit facility for the various Phases of the Project(s) to be made available by China’s EXIM Bank.
He said the Phase 1 of the Project which spans 13 States across the South East, South-South, North Central and South-West Zones of the country has been completed and commissioned.
Mzondu again noted that all through the execution and completion of Phase 1 of the Project funded by part of the credit facility, Galaxy Backbone and to a large extent, the Ministry of Communications have frustrated efforts to oversight progress of the Project.