The Federal Executive Council (FEC) has approved N873.23 billion for the execution of three projects across the country by the Ministry of Works.
Minister of Works, Dave Umahi, who dropped the hint in a chat with reporters at the State House, Abuja, after the FEC meeting, listed the projects as the Obajana-Benin Road; Isheri-Ogun Road, and the Outer Marina Shoreline protection.
The minister also said the rising cost of cement has nothing to do with his ministry’s concrete road policy.
Speaking on the approvals given by the Council based on his ministry’s memoranda, Umahi said the approval covers an additional N757 billion as augmentation for the dualisation of the 489-kilometer Obajana-Benin Road; N2.23 billion for the Isheri-Ogun Road and N114 billion for the Outer Marina Shoreline protection.
He said: “Today we’ve got augmentation approved for Obajana in Lokoja to Benin Road, a total of 244 km and 489 km dualized. Recall that in 2012, this project was awarded to four contractors – CGC; Mothercat; Dantata & Sawoe, and RCC at a total cost of N122 billion and that was for light rehabilitation.
“Around 2018, the past administration reviewed the project and dualised it and that’s why you have a total of 489 km and now got ‘No-Objection’ from the Bureau of Public Enterprise (BPP).
“When I came on board in August, we were supposed to present the ‘no-objection to FEC in line with due process and we decided to review the project, one, to determine whether the dualisation was desirable in view of the economic challenges and two, to see the texture of the soil and what to do.
“We had to restore the project now, but we didn’t increase the cost. We got approval for argumentation from N122 billion to N897 billion. The contractors were off-site because they would not be working and they would not be paid based on the new basic rate. We got them back to the site and today (yesterday) we got approval.”
