The Benue State House of Assembly has issued a seven-day ultimatum to the Commissioner for Youths, Sports and Creativity, Mr. Terkimbi Ikyange, to terminate the contract awarded to Monimichelle Sports Facility Construction Company for the renovation of the Aper Aku Stadium, citing a breach of agreement.
The directive came on Tuesday following deliberations on reports submitted by both the Commissioner and the Attorney General regarding the stalled project. Speaker of the House, Mr. Aondona Dajoh, who presided over the session, condemned the contractor’s repeated refusal to honor four separate invitations to appear before the House and its Standing Committees.
In a decisive move, the Assembly instructed the State Attorney General to commence immediate legal proceedings against Monimichelle Sports Facility Construction to recover funds already disbursed for the largely unexecuted project. It also plans to formally petition the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to investigate and prosecute the firm for allegedly defrauding the state government.
Commissioner Ikyange, in his address to the House, expressed frustration over the contractor’s poor performance, revealing that although the company received over N1.3 billion for the project, only about 40% of the work had been completed—far behind the two-month delivery timeline. The site, he added, has since been abandoned.
Backing the Assembly’s position, the Solicitor-General, who stood in for the Attorney General, confirmed that the contract had effectively lapsed due to non-performance. He supported immediate termination and legal recovery of state funds.
In addition, the Assembly ordered that all staff of the Ministry of Works, Housing and Urban Development involved in the alleged inflation of the contract sum must appear before the House for further questioning.
The House emphasized that it would not tolerate financial recklessness and vowed to hold all parties accountable in the interest of the people of Benue State.
