Nigeria’s Minister of Works, Dave Umahi, has expressed concerns about poor execution of road construction projects by contractors.
He said it is unfortunate that newly constructed roads no longer last for at least five years before damaging again.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelThe minister made the remarks while speaking on the damage of section III of Kano-Maiduguri federal road within Bauchi State by flood.
The road was cut off by a recent flood in the area. Videos shared on social media showed a section of the road completely damaged by flood which covered large part of the area including farmland.
The minister directed a technical team from the ministry to urgently evaluate the damage and provide emergency solutions to ease the suffering of Nigerians in the area and road users.
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According to a statement released on Saturday, by Umahi’s Special Adviser on Media, Barr. Orji Uchenna Orji, the minister speaking on the quality of jobs delivered, said he has been insisting that a one-year liability period is not desirable because it won’t help in detecting bad jobs.
“It’s very unfortunate that’s when a job is completed by contractors, we don’t even enjoy the road for five years, and we are back to square one. That’s why I’ve been saying that this issue of a one-year liability period is not desirable because every badly executed job can last for one year, but it can not last for five years” Umahi stated.
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The minister said the contractor that handled the construction of section III of the Kano-Maiduguri road, Mothercart Ltd, must join the works ministry’s technical team and find out why the road was cut into two.
The section of the Kano-Maiduguri road passes through Malori-Guskuri community in Katsgun Local Government Area of Bauchi State.
The road, which was completed and inaugurated by former President Muhammadu Buhari in 2021, was said to have gulped not less than N51.99 billion.
Bauchi State, Governor, Bala Mohammed, who visited the area on Thursday appealed to the Federal Government to urgently intervene and repair the road, stressing that it is a major highway and dual carriageways that connects a significant part of North-east region.
Also, the Works Minister announced the termination of section 1 of the Kano-Maiduguri road contract awarded to Dantata & Sawoe Ltd since 2007 due to delay in delivery.
Victor Ezeja is a passionate journalist with seven years of experience writing on economy, politics and energy. He holds a Master's degree in Mass Communication.
