Top Akwa Ibom contractor-politician faces questions as activist demands contract details since 2015

A public affairs commentator, Ita Benedict, has asked the Akwa Ibom State Ministry of Works to disclose details of all contracts awarded to Hensek Integrated Services Ltd by the state government over the past 11 years.

Mr Benedict, in a Freedom of Information request dated 31 August, addressed to the State Commissioner for Works and shared with PREMIUM TIMES, requested records of contracts awarded to the company between January 2015 and August 2026, including procurement documents, contract sums, variations, payments and completion certificates.

The request follows growing questions over public procurement in the state and the intersection between government contracting and partisan political activities involving the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Hensek Integrated Services, Uwem Okoko.

Mr Okoko is also the President-General of the Arise With Renewed Hope Initiative, a political group mobilising support in Akwa Ibom for President Bola Tinubu, Senate President Godswill Akpabio, Governor Umo Eno, and the All Progressives Congress.

Hensek has emerged as one of the prominent contractors working for successive administrations in Akwa Ibom, including the administration of former Governor Udom Emmanuel and the current administration of Mr Eno.

Mr Benedict said his request serves the public interest by promoting fiscal transparency, open contracting, and accountability in the state’s infrastructure spending.

What the FOI seeks

The applicant asked the ministry to provide certified true copies or otherwise verified records showing the procurement method used for each contract, including evidence of approval or a no-objection certificate from the relevant state procurement authority.

He also requested copies of advertisements or invitations to tender, bidding documents, technical and financial evaluation criteria, bid evaluation reports and recommendations of the relevant tenders board.

Other documents sought include the formal letters of award, executed contracts, bills of quantities, detailed scopes of work, contract durations, and agreed completion dates.

Mr Benedict further requested records showing the completion status of each project, including interim evaluation reports, final inspection certificates and notices of termination where applicable.

He also wants the original contract sums, approved variations, scope amendments, price adjustments, revisions to contract values, payment schedules, interim valuation certificates, and the total amount disbursed for each contract.

The applicant cited Section 24(e) of the 1999 Constitution and the Freedom of Information Act, 2011, as the legal basis for his request.

He asked the ministry to respond within seven working days, as stipulated in Section 4 of the FOI Act, or to provide written reasons for any refusal to disclose the requested information.

Contractor and political operative

The request puts renewed attention on the activities of Mr Okoko, who combines his role as a major public works contractor with a prominent position in the state’s political mobilisation.

Mr Okoko is the president general of the Arise With Renewed Hope Initiative, which is campaigning for the political interests of Mr Tinubu, Mr Akpabio and Mr Eno in Akwa Ibom.

The group has also been involved in mobilising support for the APC in the state.

The convergence of public contracting and political mobilisation raises questions about transparency and safeguards in the award and management of public contracts involving politically active contractors.

The concerns are particularly noteworthy in a state where government agencies do not proactively publish sufficient procurement information to allow the public to independently examine how contracts were awarded, their value, execution and payments.

PREMIUM TIMES had reported how Mr Eno sought powers to bypass bidding for multi-billion-naira contracts. This newspaper also reported that the Akwa Ibom State Governor’s alter ego’s disclosure that a contractor received a state job without bidding raised questions about abuse of power in Akwa Ibom’s procurement system.

Mr Okoko’s political activities predate his current role in the APC mobilisation structure.

During Mr Emmanuel’s administration, he served as coordinator of the Maintain Peace Movement in Ikot Abasi Local Government Area.

The movement was a political platform tasked with facilitating political transition and succession ahead of the 2023 elections.

The FOI request by Mr Benedict seeks records covering both the Emmanuel and Eno administrations, potentially providing a basis for comparing Hensek’s government contracts across the two administrations.

If the Ministry of Works releases the requested records, it could provide details on the scale and value of Hensek’s involvement in state-funded infrastructure projects over the period, including whether contracts were competitively procured, how contract values changed, and whether projects were completed within agreed timelines.

The documents could also help establish whether procurement procedures were consistently followed across the administrations.

As of the time of filing this report, the Ministry of Works had not publicly responded to the FOI request.

PREMIUM TIMES could not independently establish from the available information whether any of the contracts awarded to Hensek violated procurement laws or whether Mr Okoko’s political activities influenced any government contract award.

The FOI request is thus seeking official records that could help answer those questions.