Piqued by the tanker explosion which claimed many lives at the Ugwu Onyema axis of Enugu/Onitsha expressway the Federal Ministry of Works is to demand that MTN commits irrevocably to pay contractors on the project a minimum of ₦15 billion every month for the next 10 months to enable them fast track the completion of the road......CLICK HERE TO CONTINUE READING>>>.....CLICK HERE TO CONTINUE READING>>>
Failing to abide, the Ministry might consider initiating termination process of the project.
That was part of resolutions reached during a courtesy call on Minister of Works, Senator David Umahi by a delegation from the Anambra and Enugu caucus of the 10th National Assembly who came to seek the Federal Government’s intervention on the completion of the construction of Enugu / Onitsha Expressway handled by RCC Ltd and funded by MTN under the Road Infrastructure Development and Refurbishment Investment Tax Credit Scheme.
According to a press statement issued by Barr. Uchenna Orji, SA on Media to the Minister, it was further resolved that MTN would need 3 contractors to do the 79 kilometers within the original contract sum of (MTN) ₦202 Billion, furthermore, the remaining 72km of the road shall be awarded to other contractors through due process and that MTN and RCC would be invited to bid too.
The Minister assured the people of South East of the commitment of the Renewed Hope administration of President Bola Tinubu to the transformation of the transportation infrastructure in the South East like every other Geo-Political Zone of the country.
The Minister who expressed deep sympathy over the lives that have been lost along the uncompleted sections of Enugu/Onitsha Expressway especially the recent incident of tanker explosion on the Ugwu Onyema axis of the road that killed scores of people, stated that the people of South East have every reason to have implicit confidence on the ability and will of President Tinubu’s administration to address the road infrastructure deficits in South East and other Geo-Political Zones of Nigeria.
He noted that under President Tinubu , South East, has been given a pride of place in the political landscape of Nigeria, “Again, we should also be grateful to Mr. President. Since he became President, we’ve not heard about farmers and herders clashes in the South East. Mr. President inherited 2,064 projects, totaling about N13 trillion, and today, those projects will be over N20 trillion, by reason of the floating of the Naira and the removal of fuel subsidy. It’s nobody’s fault. But by his good heart and commitment to rewriting the story of this country, he will make Nigeria great again.”
He reiterated the need for South Èast to rise up in gratitude to Mr. President for prioritizing intervention on roads and for solving the problem of marginalization of South East. He said, “And so we want the National Assembly members, and of course, South East stakeholders, to please stand up and commend the President at all times, because this is not party something. And I can beat my chest and say that irrespective of party, no any other person will have the heart to do what Mr. President is doing for the people of South-East.”
Speaking during the event, the leader of the delegation and Minority Whip of the Senate, representing Enugu West, Sen. Osita Ngwu commended the Minister for the unprecedented scale of road construction, rehabilitation and maintenance nationwide but he expressed worries that some of the projects were not receiving adequate funding required to complete the projects in a record time.
He made particular reference to the Enugu /Onitsha Expressway that was awarded to RCC and funded through the Tax credit, and today, some sections of the road have become a dead trap to road users.
He stated that the delegation was compelled by the recent tanker mishap on the Ugwu Onyeama axis of the road in Enugu State to make the visit the Minister.
He expressed the readiness of the Federal law makers to offer necessary collaborations and cooperation that would help in tackling the challenges and bottlenecks faced by the Ministry in ensuring the completion of the said road.
“We appreciate that since the Minister assumed office that the President has graciously approved quite a number of projects in the South East. We appreciate Mr. President, but we are worried that it is not just about putting projects across our zone, but when these projects are not funded, it looks like it is just a game. We are worried that some of the projects that are in the South East are not receiving funds that can make it to progress so that we can have benefits for such projects. And when it is not funded, it becomes a worry to us”
On his part, the Senator representing Anambra Central in the Senate, Sen. Victor Umeh thanked the President of Nigeria for giving South East a sense of belonging in his administration and for the wave of road infrastructure transformation going on across the nation but pleaded with Mr. President to give accelerated intervention on funding for the roads in the South East so that the zone could fully benefit from the economic development agenda of the Renewed Hope administration.
He said, “While I joined my brother and colleague, Senator Osita Ngwu, in thanking the President for a worthy choice of Engr. Senator, Dave Umahi, to be the Minister of Works, he couldn’t have made a better choice based on his experience and what he was able to do as Governor of Ebonyi State through engineering infrastructure in that State.
“Through our oversight functions, we’ve been able to move around Nigeria in the various committees that we serve and we’re able to see the great works the President is doing in Nigeria to transform our transportation infrastructure through ambitious road projects and railway projects across Nigeria. We are from the South East Nigeria, and while we applaud the great strides the President is making to see that our roads are good and our railway infrastructure is actualized, we want to plead, on behalf of our people that South East should be given accelerated attention because of the infrastructure deficit we’ve had before he came on board”.