BPP Conducts Training Workshop for UNN Council and Principal Officers on Public Procurement

At the request of the institution, and in fulfilment of its mandate of building public procurement sector capacity, the Bureau of Public Procurement, on 31st January, 2014, organized a training workshop on the Public Procurement Act, 2007 for the Council and principal officers of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka.

The objective of the training, held at the UNN Liaison Office in Wuse 2 in Abuja, was to acquaint the participants with the provisions of the Act, to improve their delivery on procurement outputs.

Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the UNN Council, Mr. Emmanuel C. Ukala, SAN, and DG, BPP, Engr. Ezeh, at the opening of the workshop
BPP’s training personnel received support from the Fiscal Responsibility Commission (FRC), represented by Mr. Charles Abana; and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), represented by Chief Godwin Obla, SAN, a financial crime prosecutor, in the conduct of the workshop. While FRC’s presentation was on “An Overview of the Fiscal Responsibility Act, 2007”, EFCC focused on “Avoidable Pitfalls in the Management of Public Funds: A Financial Crime Prosecutor’s Perspective.

In his closing remarks, the UNN VC, Professor Barth O. Okolo, thanked BPP for the groundbreaking workshop.

BPP’s Director-General, Engr. Emeka M. Ezeh, making the lead presentation
The lead presentation by BPP’s Director-General, Engr. Emeka M. Ezeh, an alumnus of the institution, on “Due Process in University Affairs” set the tone for the workshop, which addressed issues around procurement in the university setting.

Taking a cue from Engr. Ezeh’s presentation, in which he underscored the status of the Vice Chancellor of the University as the Accounting Officer and custodian of the institution’s procurement system, the Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the UNN Council, Mr. Emmanuel C. Ukala, SAN, stressed his commitment to selfless service. After receiving a pack of BPP publications, he declared that, in the first year of his tenure, he would not receive any sitting allowances. He appealed to members of the Council not to interfere in the institution’s procurement operations, but to restrict themselves to provision of oversight functions to the process.

DG, BPP, Engr. Ezeh, and UNN VC, Prof. Okolo
Registrar of UNN, Mr Anthony Okonta, and other officers at the workshop
Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the UNN Council, Mr. Emmanuel C. Ukala, SAN, receives an official BPP publication from the DG, BPP, Engr. Ezeh, at the opening of the workshop