Director General of the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP). Dr Adebowale A. Adedokun, FCIPS, FCILT, ACFE has warned procurement officers against non-approved procurement plans.
Adedokun, who spoke at a meeting with non pool procurement officers in the federal parastatals, agencies, institutions, and government-owned companies in Abuja, said that “It is a criminal offence not to have procurement plans.”
He said a situation where officers at the directorate cadre recommended to the accounting officers to sign off procurements that were not captured in plans amounted to a breach of the provisions of the extant laws.
According to him, “the following constitute offences under the PPA, 2007: signing or awarding contract without procurement plan and administrative approvals (Finance Act 2023); entering or attempting to enter into a collusive agreement, with a supplier, contractor or consultant; conducting or attempting to conduct procurement fraud by means of fraudulent and corrupt acts; directly, indirectly or attempting to influence a procurement process to obtain an unfair advantage in award of a contract; and, splitting of tenders to enable the evasion of monetary thresholds set.”
He listed a number of administrative sanctions for public officers in accordance with Section 6(e) of the Public Procurement Act, 2007, to include the suspension of officers concerned with the procurement or disposal proceeding in issue; the replacement of the head or any of the members of the procuring or disposal unit of any entity or the chairperson of the Tenders Board; the discipline of the Accounting Officer of any procuring entity; and, the temporary transfer of the procuring and disposal function of a procuring and disposing entity to a third party procurement agency or consultant.”
He said that the current administration was sharply focussed on its ongoing procurement reforms and would not shy from applying sanction against government officials and companies that acted in breach of the extant procurement laws.
Adedokun cited, for instance, the provisions of Section 58 (5) of the PPA, 2007, which prescribed, upon conviction, a term of imprisonment of not less than five calendar years without any option of fine for government officials, in addition to summary dismissal from government services.
He said that erring legal entities/companies would face debarment from all public procurements for a period not less than 5 calendar years; and a fine equivalent to 25% of the value of the procurement in issue in accordance with Section 58(6) of PPA, 2007.
The BPP DG announced a series of policies aimed at achieving effective procurement processes, citing an SGF circular Ref. No. 59780/S.I/T.I/117 dated 14 June 2017, which prohibited officers on other cadres from procurement functions where career Procurement Officers were available.
According to him, “Only officers employed as Procurement Officers or converted to Procurement Officer Cadre are permitted to conduct procurement functions.
“MDAs without qualified Procurement Officers should as a matter of urgency liaise with the BPP to conduct procurement training for staff members handling procurement functions and ensure that such staff members are compulsorily enrolled for the next conversion and or induction exercise scheduled by the BPP.”
Adedokun urged procurement officers to do the right thing, assuring them that the BPP would muster the magnitude of the weight of the presidency to defend them against persecution by accounting officers or procurement directors who were bent on perverting the procurement processes.
He announced that henceforth, the postings of procurement directors’ to MDAs must enjoy the approval of the BPP. Otherwise, such postings would be deemed to be non-procedural and illegal.
The DG also informed the gathering of officers from GLs 8 to 17 at the two-day meeting that the Presidency had approved the BPP as the approving authority for all issues of variation in contracts for public projects.
E-Signed
Zira Zakka Nagga
Head of Press and Public Relations (BPP)
November 24, 2025
