Abuja – April 10, 2024 – Viewpoint Housing News.
Minister of works Dave Umahi yesterday said former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar’s poor understanding of figures made him miscontrue his analysis of the cost of the ongoing 700-kilometre Lagos-Calabar coastal road.
According to him, apart from the economic benefits of the project, it will connect the entire country.
Umahi described the issues raised by Atiku as “a gross misrepresentation of facts and figures” and a ploy to mislead Nigerians.
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate in the 2023 general election in a statement on Sunday questioned the award of the contract to Hitech Construction Company without competitive bidding.
He added that apart from the total cost of the project being unknown, N1.06 trillion had been released for the pilot phase which starts from Eko Atlantic on Victoria Island to the Lekki Deep Sea Port.
But Umahi stated that the President Tinubu administration has, in spite of the cost of construction materials, remained unmatched in prudence, cost-effectiveness, speedy and quality delivery of road projects.
His said: “He (Atiku) doesn’t understand figures. I am going to run figures for him to understand, and he will understand how prudent the administration of President Tinubu has been. He will understand how prudence is taking centre stage in this administration.
“I will do that in a press conference on my visit to Lagos this week.
“His Excellency, former Vice President Akitu Abubakar, may not know that the third section of the project is starting in Calabar by July.”
Umahi, according to a statement by his Media Adviser, Uchenna Orji, said the President once raised question on the cost of projects by his ministry.
He said: “The President has once queried me on the cost of ongoing projects nationwide. I had to analyse every basic rate of construction materials to arrive at our unit rates. I showed it to Mr. President.
“He still thinks I should bring down the cost of projects. At the same time, the contractors are crying that I am oppressing them so much by reviewing the costs of their projects downwards.
“They lamented that what they were getting before, they are no longer getting it now. They cried out. But when I run the figures, Nigerians will see what this present administration is doing.”
He also spoke on the importance of the coastal highway, saying: “It is tying the entire country together. It’s not tying just Southsouth and Southwest.
“It is tying the North and South together. We are starting a project from Badagry to Sokoto, and we have a spur on this coastal route to that route and the African Trans Sahara Road that is passing from Enugu to Abakaliki to Ogoja to Cameroon which has a spur to the North.
Other ongoing projects inspected by Umahi include the 23-span flyover bridge at Eke-Obinagu Junction (NNPC Depot), along Enugu Abakaliki Road, Enugu State; the Enugu-Port Harcourt Expressway Sections 2 and 3’ and the Eleme Junction- Onne section 111 of the East-West road.
He said that a portion of the section 111 of the East-West road might be carved out and awarded to another contractor if the contractor failed to fast tract the job.
“The reinforcement being done is very good; the concrete too is very good but the speed is not very good. “If the contractor doesn’t increase their pace, I will take out a portion and give it to another contractor.
“We will not want contractors to stay on a job like this 15 km dualisation for two years or more,” Umahi added.
