Infrastructure Policy Is Clearly Hitting The Right Buttons Across The Country – Works and Housing Minister The Minister of Works and Housing,Babatunde Raji Fashola, SAN has stated that the Infrastructure policy of the present administration is clearly hitting the right buttons across the country. He made this statement during an inspection tour of Amansea Section of the Rehabilitation of Onitsha-Enugu Expressway, Anambra; and the tour of the Federal Secretariat, Awka; as well as the National Housing Programme at Isiagwu, the Second Niger Bridge in Anambra and Delta States and the National Housing Programme in Asaba, Delta State. Mr. President, he said has continued to emphasize commitment to infrastructure as the quickest way to employing people. Fashola further said, “Policies have very diverse and extensive impact on the people, so when Mr. President says he wants to lift a 100millon people out of poverty he knows what he is saying and he knows some of the right buttons like infrastructure, to press.” Whilst going round the sites, the Minister interacted with workers who were full of appreciation to the administration of President Buhari for the opportunity to work and earn a living rather than going into crime. Mr. Sunday Etikwu, a mason at one of the National Housing Programme site who was visibly excited said he received a daily pay of N4,500 naira and works all through the week. A food vendor Mrs. Ebele Chukwu also expressed happiness for the opportunity to cook and sell alongside her husband who works as a labourer at the site goes home with at least N5,000 naira daily. Fashola said the end product may be constructing a road or building a housing estate but the human capacity is enhanced through drains being laid, electric fittings being installed, foundations being dug, blocks being molded and 7 foods being supplied, thereby proving employment and boosting the economy as well as the living standard of the community and its environs. “It is the initial value chain of the economy which is the first impact you feel when it comes to infrastructure” he said. At the National Housing Programme site at Isiagwu, the Minister observed significant improvements especially when accessing the site as compared to what obtained when he first came to the site. He further said it was a far sighted vision by the state government to open up the community, but was still expectant on their commitment to open up more roads as it would take some time for the Isiagwu community to come alive. During the inspection of the Federal Secretariat project in Awka the supervisor Engr. Nnamdi Umeji who conducted the minister round the site said the project had reached 90% completion level. The contractor handling the project observed that the project had no provision for a lift as it was not budgeted for. The Minster asked him to submit the design and cost implication for the provision of a lift booth which the contractor promised to submit within three weeks. Fashola also inspected the National Housing Programme in Asaba located along Benin-Asaba expressway which had twelve contractors on site. The Project Supervisor, Arc. Godwin Otobo said the first phase of the semi detached houses had reached almost 100% completion level. Other projects inspected were the construction of Umunya road in Awka, Anambra State where the Minister expressed dissatisfaction over the slow pace of work and charged the contractor to expedite action on the project and the construction of the second Niger Bridge which had reached over 30% completion level. It was revealed that the Second Niger Bridge will be completed in year 2022. ...

Road Users Should not Face Hardship - Fashola The Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Raji Fashola, SAN has charged contractors working on the dualization of the Lokoja – Auchi - Benin road,  to ensure that road users are not subjected to hardship while the work is on going. The Minister gave the charge on yesterday during the inspection tour of the road. Fashola said, “contractors are being encouraged to ensure that road users do not face hardship while construction work is going on especially during the rainy season” Fashola said that thorough work was being done on the road to achieve high quality. He said “ it’s not just asphalt that is being laid, the road is being built from under with laterites and stones”. At the Auchi –Ehor  section of the road, the Minister explained that the road was a source of discomfort to road users especially during the last rainy season before some emergency work was done, adding that the 250 Kilometre road  linking the North to the South which was a single road was now being dualised. He added that while some sections of the road had been completed others were at different stages of completion. Reacting to questions on how long the work was going to take before completion, Fashola said, “I think it is important to highlight the problem here for some who have questioned how long it took, we had to grade it to reduce the hill which was about 7metres which is equivalent to a two story building”. “We brought it down to reduce accident which was a perennial problem in the area and by so doing I can say that government has succeeded in saving lives and property.’’ On their part, the representatives of the various companies handling the project promised to ensure that there was free flow of traffic while the construction work is on-going and especially during the rainy season. The Minister also inspected the National Housing programme in Benin. The construction of the 44 units apartment project which is  among the on-going 34 National  Housing Programme, is near completion. The contractor gave the assurance that the project would be completed soon. Fashola said that a sustainable process was being put in place for the sale of the houses under the National Housing Programme to deserving Nigerians. ...

FEC Approves N65.9billion For Road Projects The Federal Executive Council (FEC) has approved the sum of N65.9 billion for road projects across the country. The Minister of State for Works and Housing, Alhaji Abubakar Aliyu, briefed State House correspondents on Wednesday after the Council's meeting at the Presidential Villa, Abuja. The meeting, which lasted for more than seven hours, was presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari. The minister said that the ministry presented two memos to the council which were approved. “The first memo is to seek council’s approval for the award of contract for construction of Jalingo-Kona-Lau-Karim-Lamido road phase 2 which is about 29 kilometres. “The contract at the cost of N6.92 billion inclusive of VAT; this is the phase 2 of the project; the phase 1 was completed earlier. “The second memo which was also approved by the council has three projects; one is the dualisation of the outstanding portion of the Odukpani –Itu-Ikot-Ekpene road in Cross River State to Akwa Ibom State in the sum of N50.3 billion with a completion period of 36 months. “This memo is a combination of three projects and they were all approved; the total sum of the three is N58.94 billion. “On the second project, you were all aware; in Dec. 2019, there was a report in the social media regarding a bridge in Ajaokuta; the bridge was showing an opening at the expansion joint which caused a lot talk around the country. “It was approved but actually work has commenced on that bridge and the total contract sum is N1.5 billion.’’ Aliyu said the bridge might seem a single unit but was actually segmented by expansion joints which were supposed to be maintained periodically. He said that at that time when there was a social media outcry, the ministry was already addressing the situation. The minister said that the bridge was safe to ply on as the ministry sent its engineers with some reporters and issued statements afterwards to tell people that the bridge was safe. He said that the third project on the second memo was the rehabilitation of the outstanding section of Iseyin-Okeho road including two bridges in Oyo state. Aliyu said the project was awarded at the sum of N6.87s billion with a completion period of 18 months. On his part, the Minister of Education, Malam Adamu Adamu, said the ministry presented two memos to the Council. ``One was for the procurement of textbooks for early childhood care and development and for primary schools class 1, 2 and 3 throughout the country. “The memo has 15 contractors who won; the total amount was N6.45 billion with a completion period of six weeks.’’ Adamu said that the second memo was for the construction of 23.7km perimeter fence around the University of Maiduguri. “If you could recall, it was first approved around last year. “ But for reasons of some delay the work is going to commence only now; the project sum is N1. 4 billion with a completion period of 24 weeks. “ The second one is connected to the first because it is for the procurement and installation of security equipment around the fence. The sum of the contract is N1.088 billion and the completion period is 24 weeks,’’ he said. The Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Sen. Godswill Akpabio, said the Federal Executive Council (FEC) approved the completion of about 9,000 abandoned projects across the Niger Delta region. The minister announced that the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) would be constructing nine housing estates in the region while about 1,600 people had been empowered in the last 100 days. ``We briefed the council today of the number of people that have so far been empowered in the first hundred days of coming into office. ``Over 1,600 Niger Deltans have been empowered with different skills, through the skills acquisition programme. ``We are building one skills acquisition centre per state in the region and many of them are at 80 to 90 per cent completion levels. ``Each encompasses about 38 buildings, so it's almost like a technical college, with accommodation and other facilities. ``We are also doing about nine housing estates in the region from the Ministry's perspective, to also add value to the affordable housing of the federal government's policy,’’ he said. According to him, the ministry is engaging the various communities in the Niger Delta region to ensure safety of lives and property and at the same time ensure the growth of the region. He said the ministry was carrying out remediation works in the affected states in the region. He revealed that the ministry was also supervising the affairs of the Niger Delta Development Commission for optimal result, saying the ministry was at the verge of concluding the due process to commence the forensic audit of the NDDC. ``We have got the Bureau of Public Procurement's 'No Objection' and we have also been able to get the concurrence of the Auditor-General of the Federation's office and lead consultants have come on board. ```At the moment we are trying to bring out the forensic auditors. Each state of the Niger Delta is a lot, we have nine lots in that section and then the headquarters is also a lot, which makes it ten. ``We have already set up centres in the ten locations for verification, evaluation and documentation of all IPCs and all award letters for contracts so that we'll know the contingent and actual liabilities of the NDDC. ``At the end of the exercise, the federal government hopes to have a bankable NDDC, where the balance sheet can go to the bank and be accepted and bring value in terms of industrialization to the region,’’ he said. The Minister of State for Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Hajiya Ramatu Tijjani, who also spoke on the outcome of the meeting, said she presented ministerial deliverables of the FCT to the Council. She said: ``We were able to shed more light on the assignment of creation of 5,000 affordable housing units in the Federal Capital Territory. ``This has gone a long way already because we have ensured, regulated and profiled investors already and have been able to secure land and make adequate provision for these 5,000 units. ``We have 30 hectares of land in each area council, multiply by six that will give you about 180 hectares of land.’’(NAN) ...