SIFAX Group of Companies Limited, one of the bidders for the concession of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport has approached a Federal High Court in Lagos to disqualify Tav Airports Holding Company and GMR Airport Limited from the bidding process.
The group stated that both firms owned by the same company, Airport De Paris, submitted separate bids for MMIA and were shortlisted for the next phase of the concession.
It would be recalled that A lawyer and human rights activists Femi Falana (SAN), had in a letter dated November 3, 2021, advised the Minister, Hadi Sirika, to disqualify three firms, TAV Consortium, GMR Consortium and ADP for violating the requests for qualification, RFQ process.
But Sifax, in its submission to the court contended that this breached the “specific precept of the RFQ” which states that no applicant is entitled to bid for any of the specific assets twice under any guise or form.
The plaintiff sued the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, the Federal Government and the Minister of Aviation, NAHCO Aviance Plc, the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission, ICRC, Tav Airports Holding and GMR Airport as the 1st to 7th defendants.
The plaintiff said sometime in August 2021, the Federal Government, through the Minister of Aviation, decided to concession Murtala Muhammed International Airport and Cargo Terminals via a Public Private Partnership, PPP, arrangement on a Build-Rehabilitate-Operate and Transfer, B/ROT basis.
The plaintiff noted that two consortiums owned by ADP Airport De Paris submitted an expression of interest thus violating the documented strict rules of engagement in the bidding process.
The matter has been assigned to Justice Ambrose Lewis-Allagoa.
The court has yet to fix a date to hear the suit.
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