Samar had deduced Administrator Monae and Elder Maho were merely fishing for more benefits when the latter relayed Merchant Gama's offer earlier. They expected Samar to match it or even up it but he had not played their game.
It was because he knew Commander Povnar's plans to introduce a proposal that would divide the Council into those supporting Merchant Gama and those completely against him with no middle ground.
Samar had also anticipated that the shackles of morality would not allow Elder Maho to side with Merchant Gama and events had played out just as he expected.
Elder Maho had chosen the security of the City over their deal with Merchant Gama. His choice had forced them to either side with Samar or abandon their proposal to build a Transport Hub.