Senator Hadi Sirika (seated), former Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, and an avowed “Buharist-For-Life”, checking through documents at the court in Abuja
Highlights of the excavated questionable financial transactions linked to the contract.
*** The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Investigator informed the court that Al Buraq Global Investment Ltd received a N1.5 billion contract for the Umar Musa Yar’Adua Airport Apron Expansion despite being unqualified.
*** EFCC alleged that N1.3 billion was traced back to Hadi Sirika as suspected proceeds of criminal conduct.
*** The anti-graft agency further stated that the contractors were paid the total sum of the contract [100 per cent] upfront, a practice that violated procurement regulations, which required payment based on project milestones.
*** The EFCC said the deal violated Section 12 of the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission, ICPC, Act, which bars public officers from conferring unfair advantages through abuse of office.
*** Investigator said N182 million from the contract was paid into Hamma’s (son-in-law) Zenith Bank account, with N110 million placed in a fixed deposit.
*** Investigator disclosed that additional transfers, which included N7.4 million, were made to Fatima’s (daughter) Jaiz Bank account
*** While the sum of N8.2 million was paid to Hamma’s (A staff member of the federal government corporation) Access Bank salary account.
*** Investigator further testified that N500 million was transferred to Trimark Engineering Services Limited, another company not involved in the Katsina project.
*** EFCC revealed that “The money was used to execute contracts awarded to the company by other agencies.”
*** The witness said N549 million remains in Al Buraq’s account, with the project yet to be completed.
The trial of Senator Hadi Sirika, former Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, has resumed on the six counts of contract fraud amounting to N2.8 billion, alongside his daughter, Fatima, his son-in-law, Hamma, and their company, Al Buraq Global Investment Limited.
At the resumption of trial on Tuesday, 1st of July 2025, before Justice Sylvanus Oriji of the Federal High Court, Abuja, an investigative officer with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Adekunle Odofin, further presented a forensic report of how a single contract became doubled by a simile form of ingenuity.
The federal government, through the EFCC, charged the former Minister of Aviation with allegedly splitting a multi-billion-naira contract for the Umaru Musa Yar’adua Airport in Katsina, among companies linked to his family members, thus effectively bypassing procurement regulations and undermining the Federal Executive Council (FEC) approval processes.
Odofin told the court that, “Investigation revealed the first defendant (Sen Hadi Sirika) used his priviledged position to divide the contract into two,” as against the single contract granted by the procurement commission/agency.
He further said, “The first contract, the terminal building, was awarded to Enginos, a company belonging to Hadi Sirika’s junior brother, Hamad Sirika”.
The EFCC investigator explained to the court that “the second contract, Apron Expansion, was awarded to the fourth defendant, Al Buraq Global Investment Limited,” a firm linked to the minister’s daughter, Fatima Sirika, and her husband, Jalal Hamma. The couple were members of staff of two different federal government corporations.
Hadi Sirika was also charged with abuse of office and undue favouritism in awarding contracts to firms connected to close relatives.
The investigator also raised evidence of a document titled “Remaining 2021 Projects.” The document was purportedly recovered from the vehicle of one Azubuike Okorie, which allegedly contained a handwritten note which ventilated on the splitting of the contract between Enginos and Al Buraq.
The firm, Enginos Nigeria Ltd, was owned by Hadi Sirika’s junior brother, who was at that time a director in a federal government agency. The investigator also shed light that Al Buraq was partly owned by Sirika’s son-in-law, and the mother-in-law. The son-in-law at the time the contract payment was made was an employee in a federal government oil company.
Odofin argued that forensic analysis confirmed that the handwriting belonged to Hadi Sirika, despite denying the claim.
The EFCC investigator further narrated that, “On 14th of May 2024, we received the report of the forensic expert analysis, which established that no other person made the handwriting on the disputed document but the first defendant.”
Odofin added in his statement that the outcome of the forensic expert report corroborated earlier findings from Mr Okorie.
However, the defence lawyers objected, claiming the statements were obtained under duress.
He also testified that one Saratu Chinade, is the mother of Sirika’s son-in-law, also a signatory to Al Buraq’s Zenith Bank account.
The EFCC, in its usual methodical manner presented further documents to confirm that Fatima and Hamma were still public servants at the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited and the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), respectively, at the time the contracts were awarded, raising additional concerns over conflict of interest.
However, in the light of the arguments and assertions by the prosecutor, all the defendants pleaded not guilty.
The Trial Judge, Sylvanus Oriji, adjourned the case to 27th-29th October 2025 for the continuation of the trial.
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