A public row has erupted between BUA Group and Hadiza Bala Usman, former Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) and now Special Adviser on Policy Coordination to President Bola Tinubu, over the controversial termination of a port concession deal in Rivers State.
The dispute resurfaced following a recent article by BUA Chairman, Abdul Samad Rabiu, titled “Two Years of President Tinubu: A Business Perspective”. In the piece, Rabiu accused Bala Usman of unilaterally revoking BUA’s port concession during her tenure at NPA without notice and in defiance of a court order. He also claimed the decision was intended to benefit her associates, suggesting an abuse of office.
BUA’s Accusations
In a strongly worded statement issued on May 31, BUA reiterated that Usman’s actions amounted to “personal animosity and abuse of office”, leading to losses of over $10 million. The company alleged:
- The concession was terminated without warning or consultation.
- Usman disregarded an existing federal high court injunction and bypassed the arbitration clause in their agreement.
- BUA had been actively engaging with NPA on infrastructure concerns prior to her appointment.
“Rather than act constructively, Ms. Usman used that letter as a pretext to issue a termination notice and shut down the terminal summarily,” the statement said.
BUA further dismissed Usman’s claim that former President Muhammadu Buhari was misled when he reversed her termination decision.
Usman’s Response
In a rebuttal issued through her media aide, Niran Adedokun, Bala Usman described BUA’s claims as “half-truths and outright falsehoods,” asserting that the company was issued multiple default notices before the concession was revoked.
She emphasized that:
- BUA was allowed to continue operating between January 2018 and June 2019 in full compliance with the court order.
- In May 2019, BUA itself flagged critical safety concerns, warning that “the jetty is liable to collapse at any moment.”
- NPA engineers, in response, recommended decommissioning the terminal to protect lives and nearby infrastructure.
Adedokun also criticized BUA’s conduct, saying the company acts “as though it is above Nigerian laws” and accused it of manipulating public opinion.
“BUA cannot mislead the public with a selective narrative while ignoring the serious structural risks it itself acknowledged,” he stated.
Background
The confrontation is part of a broader tension between powerful business interests and public institutions in Nigeria, particularly in the ports and logistics sector. It also sheds light on the delicate balance between policy enforcement, legal compliance, and political influence.
While both parties remain adamant in their positions, the fallout from this dispute could further intensify scrutiny of past and present port concessions and raise questions about transparency and due process in Nigeria’s public-private agreements.
