THE trial of former Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Hadi Abubakar Sirika, continued on Wednesday before Justice S.C. Oriji of the Federal Capital Territory High Court, Abuja, with a prosecution witness alleging that the former minister breached due process in the award of contracts linked to the controversial Nigeria Air project.
News Point Nigeria reports that the 12th prosecution witness (PW12), Christopher Odofin, an investigator with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), told the court that Sirika approved a ₦299 million consultancy contract and a further ₦599 million contract extension in favour of Tianaero Nigeria Limited without following established procurement procedures, in violation of due process.
Sirika is standing trial alongside his daughter, Fatima Hadi Sirika; his son-in-law, Hamma Jalal Sule; and Al Buraq Global Investment Limited on amended six-count charges bordering on abuse of office and alleged misappropriation of over ₦2 billion in public funds.
Odofin told the court that the first contract award letter issued to Tianaero Nigeria Limited for consultancy services on the Nigeria Air project was dated April 4, 2022, while the second contract award letter was issued on April 6, 2022, forming part of what the prosecution described as irregular procurement actions linked to the former minister.
According to his testimony, the Ministry of Aviation and Aerospace Development had written to the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) on March 7, 2022, requesting a Certificate of No Objection for the engagement of consultants on the project. However, the BPP’s response, dated April 6, 2022, was only received by the ministry on April 7, 2022.
The witness maintained that the contracts had already been awarded before the ministry received BPP approval, insisting that due process was not followed.
“Before the Ministry of Aviation and Aerospace Development received a response from the BPP, the contract award letter had already been issued to Tianaero Nigeria Limited,” he told the court.
Odofin further alleged that the Bureau of Public Procurement was not informed of the second contract award at all, describing the process as a clear breach of procurement regulations.
He also identified Tianaero Nigeria Limited as a company owned by German national Gabriel Tilmann, whom he described as a close associate of the former minister.
The EFCC witness further testified that both contract sums were paid in full to the company despite the absence of an operational national carrier under the Nigeria Air project.
He said the ₦299 million consultancy fee was paid in four instalments between May 1 and July 22, 2022 into the company’s Access Bank account, while the ₦599 million contract extension was paid in two instalments between October and December 2022 into its Guaranty Trust Bank account.
Odofin also told the court that Tianaero Nigeria Limited had been registered for barely one year before the contracts were awarded, noting that it was incorporated on March 29, 2021.
Meanwhile, a compact disc allegedly containing a verbal directive from Sirika to the ministry’s permanent secretary—ordering that the contracts be awarded to Tianaero Nigeria Limited—could not be played in court due to technical difficulties, leading the court to defer its presentation.
Justice Oriji subsequently adjourned the matter to July 8 and 9, 2026, for continuation of trial, as the prosecution continues to present evidence.