EFCC witness faults aviation ministry contracts awarded to ex-minister Hadi Sirika’s relatives, associate

Former Minister of Aviation Hadi Sirika awarded “questionable” contracts to his family members and a friend during his tenure in office, an investigator told a court in Abuja on Thursday.

Christopher Odofin, a detective with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) appearing as a prosecution witness in Mr Sirika’s corruption trial, said this while fielding cross-examination questions from defence counsel Kanu Agabi.

He listed the irregularities characterising the contracts to include imposition of contractors on the ministry and a breach of the then-minister’s approval thresholds.

Holding a contract document handed to him by Mr Agabi, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Mr Odofin described the contract award as questionable and maintained that Mr Sirika approved that the contract be awarded to his associate “beyond his threshold”.

“He also awarded a contract to a company belonging to his daughter,” the 12th prosecution witness said.

The EFCC is prosecuting Mr Sirika, alongside his daughter Fatima Sirika, her husband Jalal Hamma, and the couple’s firm, Al Buraq Global Investment, over contracts he allegedly corruptly awarded to the couple and an associate.

One count accused the former minister of “criminal breach of trust by being dishonestly connected with the illegal award of N1.5 billion contract for the apron extension at Katsina Airport for the benefit of his daughter and Al Buraq Global Investment Ltd.

Another count alleged that he was “dishonestly connected with the illegal award” of the Katsina airport contract to the benefit of his daughter and son-in-law.

The EFCC similarly accused Mr Sirika in another charge of conferring unfair advantage on his friend Gabriel Tilmann’s Tianaero Nigeria Limited by using his position to award to the firm a consultancy contract for the Nigerian Air start-up to the tune of N1.3 billion.

Yet another count accused the former aviation minister of being dishonestly connected with the “illegal” award of the N1.3 billion consultancy contract for the Nigerian Air national carrier start-up.

The then-outgoing administration of President Muhammadu Buhari unveiled the national carrier days before handover in May 2023, only for the public show to be later found to be a ruse.

Mr Sirika allegedly disguised an Ethiopian Airlines aircraft as Nigeria’s national carrier, Mr Odofin previously said in his testimony, which he started over a year ago on 30 June 2025.

Mr Sirika and his co-defendants have denied all charges.

Sirika’s recommendation

But Mr Odofin said under cross-examination on Thursday that although nothing on the face of the Air Nigeria consultancy services contract document implicated Mr Sirika, he said the award followed the former minister’s recommendation.

“There is nothing implicating the first defendant on the face of the document, but the contract was awarded based on the recommendation of the first defendant (Mr Sirika),” Mr Odofin said.

The witness said Musa Odiniya, the Director of Procurement who earlier testified as the fifth prosecution witness, should not have been the one to sign the document.

The witness stated that while Mr Sirika was not part of the Ministerial Tenders Board (MTB), Abel Enitan, the ministry’s permanent secretary, headed the board.

Despite this, “Al Buraq was imposed on the tender Board to be selected as a contractor.

The first defendant imposed the company. They were forced to do the bidding of the first defendant.”

When the contract was awarded to Al Buraq, Mr Enitan was the CEO and accounting officer of the aviation ministry, the witness stated. Similarly, Mr Odiniya, who headed procurement, did not indicate in any document that he was prevented from performing his duty.

On Al Buraq contract

Fielding questions from Fatima Sirika’s lawyer, Efut Okoi, confirmed that Ms Sirika was not the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Al Buraq Global Investment Limited.

The witness said no land was assigned for the expansion of the apron at the Katsina airport, and that there was no contract for the expansion of the apron for Al Buraq.

Asked if he took extrajudicial statements from officers of the Nigerian Air Force, Nigerian Airport Authority and the Katsina State Government on the expansion of the Katsina airport apron, the witness said no.

Mr Odiniyan earlier testified in court, saying that the contract payment during Mr Sirika’s tenure was expedited to ensure the project was completed and ianugurated before former President Buhari left office.

Mr Odiniyan also said that Al Buraq affiliated to Mr Sirika’s son-in-law and co-defendant was unqualified and would not have won the contract under a fair bidding process.

My role is limited as an Investigator

Mr Odofin affirmed that the EFCC completed its investigations in April 2026.

The witness stated that his role is limited to investigating, filing reports, and coming to court to testify.

READ ALSO: BDC operator explains roles in payment of Yahaya Bello’s children’s dollar-priced school fees

A voice note ascribed to Mr Sirika dominated featured prominently in two previous hearings.

EFCC said the voice represented Mr Sirika’s verbal instructions to Mr Enitan, the then-permanent secretary of the aviation ministry, to award the contract to Mr Tilmann.

On Thursday, Mr Odofin explained he did not prepare the digital forensic report which was used in filing the charges. He said it was prepared by Bello Gideon.

But he said the phone, an Infinix X pro model belonging to Mr Enitan in which the voice note was extracted, was not in court.

Thereafter, the trial judge, Slyvanus Oriji, adjourned the case until 20 October for continuation of cross-examination.