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Tag: Fashola

  • Apapa Road is priority, says Fashola

    Apapa Road is priority, says Fashola

    Repair of the Apapa ports road is a priority to the Federal Government, Minister of Power, Works and Housing Mr Babatunde Fashola has said.

    Speaking with reporters in Abuja at the weekend after the ministry’s retreat, Fashola said arrangements for the deployment of an enduring solution on Wharf Road would soon be concluded.

    Some companies, he said, had agreed to work with government to fix Wharf Road, adding that the design and other requirements for the road were ready.

    What was left now was to sign the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) before seeking the Federal Executive Council’s (FEC)’s approval, the minister said.

    Fashola said: “I just want to appeal to residents of Apapa, to people whose livelihood depends on Apapa, that Apapa is one of the priority roads under our priority of works to save roads that lead to critical ports. We also have Calabar on our radar. But one by one there would be an enduring solution. We have done the design, we have done everything for Apapa, it is ready. It is going to be a concrete road, I believe, that will last another 30 years. So we are close to starting work.”

    Fashola also said the government wanted to be clear whether what the companies were offering was Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) or they wanted a tax refund for what they were offering, adding that the challenge of inadequate budgetary allocation had affected the roads over the years.

    “Year on year, you will see that the provisions for the budget funding of Apapa and the Tin Can Island and Mile 2 – Oworonshoki Roads, all of which evacuate the Port have not been sufficient really to deal with the cost”, he said.

    Fashola added: “The cost that we are getting from the contractor there is in the region of about N100billion and above and the annual budgetary appropriation that is approved for us is about N7 billion. And then there are debts that we met”.

  • On the entourage of Fashola

    Babatunde Fashola, the Minister of  Power, Works and Housing, toured the South-west geopolitical zone between Thursday, March 23, and Saturday, March 25, and inspected ongoing and completed federal projects and facilities under his supervision. Traveling by road, he left Abuja at 5p.m and arrived in Ado Ekiti, capital of Ekiti State, at 1a.m. He had earlier in the day attended the Federal Executive Council meeting and subsequently addressed the media where he announced the award of the contract for the resumption of work on the Second Niger Bridge.

    In Ado-Ekitti, the blunt and sometimes, embarrassingly honest governor of Ekiti State, Ayodele Fayose, was at hand to welcome the minister, whom he praised for his determination to develop federal projects in the state. Fayose said that most other ministers would have hopped into town in a helicopter, thereby denying themselves a proper understanding of the state of infrastructure in the country. He stated that in appreciation of the impressive work done and to be done in his state by Fashola, he was considering toning down his criticism of the federal administration. Fashola replied that  party affiliation is of no interest to the present administration in its enthusiastic approach to develop the country.

    As one of the senior journalists in the minister’s entourage, I rode in the same Toyota Coaster bus with him, his aides and a number of high ranking officials of the Ministry of Power, Works and Housing. It was the first time I was at close quarters with Fashola. He is tall, slim and firm-featured. I was very impressed by his extensive knowledge and incisive mind. In discussions on variegated issues, he displayed exceptional versatility, a grasp of highly technical details and receptivity to innovations and alternative views. His answers to questions were terse and clear. And he insisted that the professional experts in his entourage and at project sites answer questions and offer explanations in simple and clear language, devoid of technical terms,  understandable to the layman. In the four-day tour, he talked no politics. Evidently, he is not allowing we-versus-them mindset of partisan politics to get in the way of his service to Nigerians.

    The tour winded from Ekiti to Ondo, Osun, Oyo, Ogun and then Lagos states. Overall, he inspected 14 federal road and housing projects as well as the Omotosho Power Plant in Ondo State and the Olorunsogo Power Plant in Ogun State. In every state, the governor and his people were delighted to receive him. They were all appreciative of the work his ministry is doing in their individual states. They asked the minister to facilitate the federal government’s reimbursement of the moneys they spent renovating federal roads in their states. Over the years, earlier federal administrations were unable to maintain and upgrade federal roads. And, as these roads deteriorated, some state governments took it upon themselves to renovate them and then, demand a refund from the federal government. Fashola assured them that the Buhari administration is not only committed to making the refunds to state governments but is already arranging for the necessary funds to do so through a bond programme.

    Some of the projects the minister inspected were started during the Yar’Adua administration but because they were not funded, the contractors abandoned them. The Buhari administration brought the contractors back to work and paid them. For example, the contract for the rehabilitation of the Efon Alaaye-Erinmo-Iwaraja Road (at the cost of N3.5b) was awarded on April 6, 2009 and was projected to be completed on June 19, 2011. But due nonpayment, the contractors stopped work. In November 2016, Fashola brought back the contractor and paid his outstanding debts. He is now working and has promised to complete the road on June 19. On the tour, the minister assured the contractors that, unlike in the past, they would now be paid quarterly and promptly.

    Paradoxically, when oil sold for $100 per barrel and the country was awash with money, the country was littered with abandoned federal government projects, but now that oil is selling for less than $50.00 per barrel and the country is in a recession, the Buhari government has revived the abandoned projects and is paying contractors on time. This is a powerful testament to President Mohammadu Buhari’s fulfillment of his electoral promise of change – change from official corruption to accountability and probity. In an obvious break with the past, his administration is directing government resources to addressing the needs and solving the problems of the Nigerian masses. So, instead of stealing and salting away public funds into private pockets, it is channeling them through different ministries and agencies to improve the economy and better the lives of Nigerians. In the Ministry of Power, Works and Housing  the funds have been channeled into building houses and beefing-up public infrastructure – constructing and renovating roads, bridges, seaports, etc.

    The federal government projects in the South-west are miniature but palpable economic engines; generating both direct and indirect employment and boosting local businesses. Each of the 14 federal government projects inspected by the minister generates an average of 486 direct jobs and 660 indirect jobs. In addition, tons of cement, granite and sand are being purchased, through sub-contractors, from local businesses. And transporters, drivers, mechanics and laborers are also engaged in the transportation of construction materials to the sites. The creation of jobs and the bolstering of local businesses are contributing to drive the economy out of the current recession. Getting the economy out of its current state is the first step in the Buhari government’s planned economic boom and the overall improvement of the quality of life for the generality of Nigerians.

    At the site of the National Housing Programme in Akinyele LGA, Ibadan, it was poignant as the minister entered a “buka” – a makeshift restaurant built of planks within the construction site. It was lunch time and as the “buka” customers busily munched on their lunch, the minister sat amongst them, next to the restaurant owner. The lady, stunned by the unannounced presence of this eminent visitor in her “buka”, was somewhat bashful. The minister inquired about her business and how she came to set up a restaurant at the site. She explained that she came from Lagos with her husband. Her husband, an artisan, is employed at the site. So, she set up a restaurant; and serves food to the construction workers.

    Throughout his tour of the South-west, the minister told the people of the South-west that he was bringing them good tidings from President Buhari. That the president asked him to thank, on his behalf, every one of them that is at work, working, in anyway and in any capacity, to make this country a better place.

     

    • Ezukanma writes from Lagos.
  • Fashola seeks special funds for power

    Fashola seeks special funds for power

    •Review of procurement act

    Minister of Power, Works and Housing Babatunde Fashola has advocated provision of special funds for the power sector and approval for the infrastructure Ministries to utilise all funds released even after expiration of a financial year.

    According to a communiqué from the ministry yesterday, Fashola made the call during the Retreat for Directors, Chief Executive Officers of Parastatals and Head of Units of the Federal Ministry of Power, Works and Housing in Abuja.

    The theme of the retreat was teamwork for optimal productivity.

    The retreat, said the communiqué, noted that there was the need for the National Assembly to amend the Public Procurement Act 2007 with a view to reducing the time frame of the procurement process.

    Fashola said there was the need for procuring entities to strictly adhere to the approved threshold as contained in the Procurement Guidelines issued by the Bureau of Public Procurement Act, 2007 and other extant rules.

    The minister advised procuring entities to always have in place, the procurement planning committee and fast track the procurement process based on budget proposals without necessarily waiting for the passage of the Appropriation Act.

    He sought support from highest political levels in the implementation of the Ministry’s projects in line with the Public Procurement Act 2007, guidelines and other extant rules governing public procurement.

    He said that there was the need to compel foreign companies involved in construction projects to sublet certain components of the projects to local/indigenous contractors with a view to building their capacity.

    The minister advised thorough scrutiny of payments to consultants for project supervision in order to obtain maximum value for money.

  • UK to support Nigeria power sector reform

    UK to support Nigeria power sector reform

    British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Mr. Paul Arkwright, said the British Government would support power sector reform in Nigeria.

    Arkwright disclosed this to journalists after visiting the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola.

    He said the visit was to identify areas of collaboration with the Nigerian Government, especially in infrastructure and power sector.

    He said the idea was to support President Muhammadu Buhari’s agenda on diversification, adding that no meaningful progress could be made without effective power sector.

    The envoy said the meeting was also for British companies to take advantage of the opportunities available in Nigeria’s power sector.

    NAN

  • FEC approves N55.7bn for road, aviation contracts

    The Federal Executive Council (FEC) on Wednesday approved road and aviation projects totaling N55.7 billion.

    The Ministers of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, Minister of State for Aviation, Hadi Sirika, Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed and that of Water Resources, Suleiman Adamu, briefed State House correspondents at the end of the meeting presided over by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo.

    According to Fashola, N54.172 billion was approved for Odukpani Itu-Ikot Ekpene route linking Akwa Ibom and Cross River States.

    He said: “The Ministry of Power Works and Housing had just one memorandum and it was for the award of the Odukpani Itu-Ikot Ekpene route linking Akwa Ibom and Cross River States with a spur to Ibede Itan. The road project was awarded to Julius Berger Plc.

    “So we expect that all of the problems associated with that road which was constructed for well over 40 years ago which has outgrown its design life and also its design capacity those problems will now be frontally responded to by the award of this contract. We will do the best to quickly mobilise the contractor to site with the onset of the rainy season and am sure that by this time next year, it will be a better story and a better journey time experience in that area of the country.”

  • The Fashola effect

    Going back to one’s words is not a pleasant thing. It is akin to returning to scoop up one’s spittle or worse stuff. This dirty job is what one is about to do here today. This column didn’t think it was a good idea to have collapsed three major ministries into one and saddled one minister with such behemoth. It didn’t matter that one had followed Babatunde Raji Fashola’s trajectory from inception; one still didn’t think him a superman.

    When therefore, President Muhammadu Buhari introduced such novelty, one thought it was unwise to say the least and we said so vehemently. Of all ministries, how could we deign to combine Works, Power and Housing? Why, these are the majors!

    But reports emanating from the Federal Ministry of Works, Power and Housing (FMWPH) have shown that the assignment may well be a piece of cake for the one we call BRF. In fact it is widely believed that what is known as the Fashola effect is beginning to manifest in this composite ministry.

    First, work has begun in most abandoned federal roads across the country. Work is currently going on in at least two roads in each of the 36 states of the federation. This means that a minimum of 72 roads spread across the six zones of the country are right now enjoying a resurgence of activities by way of site preparation, massive earth works, and a teeming of men and machinery. If these reports are anything to go by, one can wager that there was probably never a time so many roads were attended to at the same time.

    Two highways will serve as example here: the Lagos –Ibadan Expressway (LIE) and the Lagos – Ore – Benin Expressway (LOBE). These are probably the busiest roads in Nigeria. As one noted here previously, for the first time in a long while, the seasonal exodus to the Southeast last December was largely smooth. It witnessed few accidents and hardly any  gridlock often occasioned by bad portions of this road.

    Trips from Lagos to the East for instance, used to be marred by the need to run one-way in many sections of the road; the need to do detours sometimes through bush tracks and it was often plagued by extended traffic jams caused by many failed portions along the old road.

    All that is becoming a thing of the past on the LOBE. The ministry under Fashola, having anticipated the seasonal surge of traffic,  quickly embarked on numerous ameliorative work on the road which made last Christmas’ throng a bit pleasurable. Today, work has gone far apace on the Ore – Sagamu stretch and it is likely that by year end, we shall have a near brand new expanded and ‘nylon’-tarred road. It is the same with the LIE; work has been going on earnestly from both ends – Lagos to Sagamu and Ibadan to Sagamu. We all remember the encumbered state of this road for about five years of the Goodluck Jonathan era. By the time he left office, the highway was enmeshed in a complicated knot of litigation with a private investor.

    While this charade went on, the road deteriorated and claimed daily, the lives and limbs of hapless commuters. It was a season of endless road carnage.

    How that knot was untied should never be the concern of the citizenry in the first place; what is important is that work has not stopped on that road since Fashola and his team moved in little over one year ago. That is quite salutary.

    We noted in the beginning that an estimated number of 72 roads are being rehabilitated at the moment. Many would not readily understand the import and impact of this. These are roads that have been abandoned in the last one decade due to government’s insouciance, non-fidelity to contractual agreements and lack of financial planning for projects.

    If so many contractors are back at work, this means they have been mobilised and are being paid for work done. Of course we know that the Works budget was amply increased for 2016 and the impending 2017 budget. This is the result of planning and in turn, acute leadership. But we also know that budget proposal is one; actual (cash) is another and judicial and accountable deployment of funds is yet another matter.

    But what really earned this space today is the knowledge that the minister has visited his projects in nearly all the six zones across the country and all the states save for about three or so. Imagine a shuttle across about 33 states of the federation in less than six months. Imagine inspecting about 70 work sites in all the four corners of the country. Imagine the multiplier effect of construction going on from the creeks of the Niger Delta to the Boko Haram savaged Northeast.

    These revived projects betoken the creation of more jobs for young people on work sites; supply of cement, sand, gravel, chippings, iron rods, food, drinks and a dozen other items. This indeed must translate to a massive boost to the economy.

    And he is not only visiting roads but also power generating plants in each state. Fashola also visits ongoing work in the 1,000 units per-state National Housing Programme. Work is also going on apace on this in as many states as have provided land. The ministry has said that if the Federal Housing project is not going on in your state right now, please hold your governor responsible; he is denying your people their share of the housing ‘national cake’.

    Think for a moment what would happen if all this is sustained in the next two years or more. Who says a tree cannot make a forest; who says only an engineer could head the Works, Power and Housing ministry; who says leadership is not everything?

     

    Lagos @ 50: Whither Igbo of Lagos

    As our mega city sets on an elaborate celebration of her golden jubilee, the big drums are out. Personalities who apparently gave the city voice, flesh and character are being lined up for recognition: Aliko Dangote, Folorunso Alakija, Mobolaji Johnson, Papa Jakande, BAT, BRF and AAA to name a few.

    Great, but what is the method to all this? It looks like names are merely pulled off the cuff. As my colleague Femi Macaulay pointed out in his column (Eagle Eye) on Monday, who would celebrate Lagos without a Sir Herbert Macaulay? And where are the Igbo of Lagos?

    There are Lagos Igbo families three generations old who have left indelible landmarks and impacted beautifully on the highways and landscapes of Eko.

    Zik was an Isale Eko boy who schooled at Methodist Boys High School, Lagos. Upon his return from US and Ghana, set up businesses in Lagos and started his politics here. He was MP for Lagos in the Western House. The imprints of Sir Louis Odumegwu Ojukwu, the wealthiest man of his day are still visible all over Lagos.

    If these are ‘old’ history, Rear Admiral Godwin Ndubuisi Kanu (retd) is not only a former Military Administrator, he lives in Lagos till today, and has been in the frontline of the progressives bent of Lagos politics. Recall NADECO. Prof. Pat Utomi, a public intellectual, has lit up the city with his fiery mind these past three decades; Jim Ovia, Cosmas Maduka, Onyeka Onwenu; the Mbanefos, the Ibrus, to name a few? Let’s make it inclusive; let’s win together.

  • Fashola directs DisCos to meter customers, MDAs

    Fashola directs DisCos to meter customers, MDAs

    The Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, has directed the electricity distribution companies (DisCos) to give prepaid meters to their customers including government Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs).

    He spoke at the 14th ministerial monthly meeting with operators of the power sector, held at the National Control Centre, Osogbo, Osun State. The minister emphasised that the purpose of the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI) is to ensure that citizens can access power safely, reliably, and consistently and that it must remain committed to ensuring the achievement of those objectives.

    Fashola reiterated government’s commitment to its responsibilities in the power sector through policies such as the Power Sector Payment Assurance Guarantee to ensure liquidity stability in the sector so that generating companies are paid for their services. He also stated that all stakeholders remain committed to their various roles in supplying and distributing power to ensure that the power sector functions effectively.

    He urged electricity customers to play their role in the success of the industry, through the timely payment of bills, ending the vandalism of power assets, and the assault of electricity workers who seek to install or read meters. Federal Government had started by the payment of an initial tranche of N374,551,000 to Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) for outstanding MDA debts at the Federal Secretariat, Abuja.

    According to a communiqué issued at the end of the meeting, discussions focused on identifying, and finding practical solutions to critical issues facing the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry.

    The Managing Director, Transmission Company of Nigeria, it said, highlighted the issue of unutilised load (previously described as load rejection) currently causing high system frequency on the national grid, and encouraged the industry to take necessary steps to address the problem. TCN restated its commitment to expand transmission infrastructure and improve its operation and performance within the power sector value chain.

    The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) assured of Federal Government’s commitment to tariffs that ensure a self-sustaining power sector and to supporting NERC in applying sanctions where appropriate to ensure operators comply with the rules.

    NERC highlighted the recently reconstituted commission’s focus on fair but firm regulation in the following areas: enforcing DisCo metering commitments, prepaid meters for MDAs, centralised management of market revenues collected from all customers, appropriate capitalisation of DisCos, and prudent procurement. NERC was tasked with ensuring fair play for consumers and providers within the sector.

    Osun State Governor, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, acknowledged the gradual improvement of electricity supply especially in the state which hosts the National Control Centre. He acknowledged the importance of the Power Sector Recovery Plan as critical to ensuring accountability for losses, improving customer service, customer accessibility, safety, and performance in the sector.

  • Between Ambode and Fashola 

    Governor Ambode is a politician. Ex-Governor Fashola is a technocrat. They will naturally see things differently. Their body language during their recent official engagement in Lagos did not only bring out their differences but also betrayed the frosty relationship between them. If you missed that, you couldn’t have but observed their choice of words as they laboured to give an impression that all was well. As if to soothe the raw nerves of his guest whom he had accused of frustrating the efforts of his administration, Ambode broke the ice by observing that ”whatever it is that we have done in the last 22 months is just more or less a fall out of the great achievements the former governor had already put in place.”

    Ambode, the brilliant politician, however did not forget to quickly add that the “remarkable change between 1999 and now was made possible by the solid foundation laid by Ahmed Bola Tinubu.” Reading in between the lines, it is not difficult to understand Ambode’s subliminal message: If Tinubu, in spite of laying the solid foundation, was humble enough to describe himself as ‘the visionary’ and Fashola ‘the actualiser’, the minister should look beyond mischief makers demonstrating in his name to emulate Tinubu who as a leader did not feel diminished by the success of his predecessor.

    The chilly relationship had been kept away from the public until Ambode’s public expression of frustration with Fashola’s Ministry of Works over his efforts to fix the broken MM International Airport Road. He had told journalists while inspecting some ongoing projects in Lagos that, ”the present state of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport Road was a national disgrace and required immediate attention to salvage the nation’s image.”  He blames the Federal Ministry of Works which, according to him, “believe that they should do the road, but have not been able to do it all these years past,” and has now constituted itself into a stumbling block at a time the state is ready with “a design of 10 lanes from Oshodi to the International Airport, cash and a willing contractor set to start and finish the work in six months.”

    Fashola , the technocrat, seems satisfied  establishing his ministry’s support for Lagos State which,  according to him, approved ‘the use of the Federal Ministry of Works yard at Oworonsoki for Lagos State Government to create a lay-by to ease traffic; granted Lagos State the Rights to manage the Street Lighting on the 3rd Mainland Bridge to support the security initiatives of the State, a request which the previous Federal Government administration had denied Lagos State for years; and that the Hon Minister also ‘supported the approval of the World Bank Loan of $200m to Lagos State, again a request the previous administration had denied Lagos State.” But the technocrat missed the point. His narratives are unrelated to the broken MM International Airport Road. In fact, with Fashola’s tales, it is not out of place to be wondering if he wants a medal for doing the right thing.

    And when it came to addressing the source of Ambode’s frustration, it was a litany of excuses. First, Raji Fashola tries to educate us on the complexity of decision-making process by the National Executive Council (NEC).  This, according to him, involves thorough debate of all issues,  and in the case of roads, it sometimes requires making surveys, maps and other material available to assist members understand the location and connectivity of the roads.’ He also wants the public to understand that Ambode’s request is complex as two of the roads he wants to take over connect Ogun State. Kaduna State, with a less complex request, according to him, followed due process by waiting for ten months to get NEC’s nod. Fashola, who does not see this as evidence of indolence on the part of NEC, seems to be asking Ambode to suspend all plans and await NEC’s due process.

    With the above scenario, we need not search any further as to why our federal system is dysfunctional at a period government has become a science with templates for managing federal government projects, procurement,  acquiring real properties and for construction. It explains why, instead of adopting the best practices in the world, we would rather settle for retroactive laws to legalise confiscation of private and public land and properties, as was the case with Babangida,   or come up with disingenuous laws enacted for the purpose of sharing our national patrimony, as was the case under the Obasanjo’s monetisation policy

    Fashola is probably too refined to become intoxicated by federal power, to deliberately set out to sabotage a state he had selflessly served for eight years as governor, but this does not make him any less dangerous to Lagos State or the west he represents in Abuja. Fashola, as a technocrat performing a political function, poses a danger to those he represents.

    For instance, as governor of Lagos State, his critics claim he was not particularly supportive of the Development Agenda for Western Nigeria (DAWN). His artless argument was that Lagos was not part of the west. It is only Fashola, the technocrat, who would not remember that the Federal  Capital  administered by the  Federal Ministry of Lagos Affairs had always been part of the west; that it was after  Dr. Olorunnibe’s  refusal to step down to allow Zik go to the centre to represent Lagos  in the early fifties that politicians like Ozumba Mbadiwe moved the motion to cede Lagos out of west, a motion ignored by Prime Minister Tafawa Balewwa  and that Ikeja, Agege, Mushin, Ikorodu, Epe, and Badagry  were taking out of   western Nigeria by Decree 14 of 25 May, 1967,  to create the present Lagos State.

    Hiding under the excuse that the roads Ambode wants to take over connect Ogun State as the reason for inaction seems to vindicate those who said the west did not need a technocrat but an astute politician in Abuja where everything is politics and where, with devious moves, deal makers could reduce a victorious party to an opposition party overnight. Fashola must realise that even as President Buhari’s foreman, he is in Abuja as a politician to protect the interest of the west, especially after eight years of marginalisation by a vindictive ex-President Obasanjo and another six years under ex-President Jonathan, his godson.

    He must not delude himself by assuming President Buhari, his principal, is not a politician. Politics flows naturally in his blood and, by the way, no one understands power politics more than a Fulani man.

  • Thanks, Fashola

    Thanks, Fashola

    On Thursday, March 16, 2017, my father, Boniface Umenzekwe, was buried in my hometown, Achina in Aguata Local Government Area of Anambra State. Aged 90 years, my late father, better known by the sobriquet “Ihenyirimmadu,” died in January, 2017. Between the time of his departure and burial, I travelled countless times from my base in Lagos to Achina, all by road, to prepare for the funeral ceremonies which, in keeping with the culture of the Igbo people in Anambra State, were bound to be elaborate and expensive. I am the only child of my parents, so the funeral arrangements fell on my shoulders. I still wonder how I could have coped with the humungous challenges if my father had departed a few years ago when roads were in such a mess that many bereaved families stayed on the Lagos-Benin Road with bodies of their beloved ones for more than a day.  And this brings me to the crux of this article.

    The Lagos-Sagamu-Ijebu Ode-Ore highway has changed dramatically in the last one year. So has the Lagos-Ibadan highway where Julius Berger is doing a damn good job. This was perhaps the busiest road in the country, yet the Olusegun Obasanjo administration abandoned it for years.  Both the Umaru Yar’Adua and Goodluck Jonathan governments were running around in circles on this critical road. The quality and speed of the ongoing reconstruction work on this expressway must be one of the remarkable achievements of the Muhammadu Buhari administration, which will on May 29 mark its second anniversary. Since I use the road extensively, I have no hesitation in praising the Buhari administration for doing the right thing. And I commend, in particular, the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, for exhibiting leadership and dynamism.

    As already indicated above, it is not just on the Lagos-Ibadan section that massive rehabilitation work is going on, of all the roads I have been using extensively in recent times. If Julius Berger is doing a most impressive job on the Lagos-Ibadan Road, Reynold Construction Company is arguably doing superior work on the Sagamu-Ijebu-Ore Road. Frankly, to call what is going on there mere rehabilitation is a gross understatement. It is even more than ordinary reconstruction. The thickness of the asphalt is far more than that used when the road was constructed the first time in the 1970s; probably this is in recognition of the enormous load on it now. State-of-the-art drainage facilities are now being provided, channeling flood water from the road to appropriate places. This means that the road will last. Reinforced upstand kerbs are now replacing pipes and railings on bridges, designed to prevent persons and vehicles from plunging into rivers, streams, rivulets and valleys. Upstand kerbs also help people with acrophobia, or irrational fear of height.

    Given the quality of work and the frenetic speed of execution, people now drive from Lagos to Onitsha in a little over five hours. Just two years ago, the same journey used to take at least nine hours. It was worse on Sundays, even a year ago. It was usual to spend up to three hours on one spot in Ondo State where the road failed woefully or was under reconstruction. Nigerians’ impatience on the road and general rough driving habits used to result in gridlock here, forcing many into driving on village bush paths. This chaotic situation was most pronounced on Sundays because many people travel on Sundays.

    The failed sections of the Lagos-Sagamu-Ijebu Ode-Ore-Benin Expressway may be located outside the Southeast geopolitical zone, but it would appear that it was people and businesses from this zone that bore the brunt of the messy state of the road. Most travellers who use the road are from the area, and the people from the place are the major investors in transport business, ranging from Ekene Dili Chukwu to The Young Shall Grow, to Eekesons, to Chisco, to ABC, etc. The very poor condition of the road forced them to change their business model. For instance, instead of investing in big luxury Volvo or Mercedes buses from Brazil, they switched to Toyota minibuses which our people curiously call Hummer Bus. While mini buses can manouvre their way through bush paths, luxury buses can hardly do so. In fact, luxury bus operators were forced by the almost impassable nature of the road to remove their front grills, thus distorting their aesthetics.

    One is glad to report that Fashola is doing well also in the heart of the Southeast. The Onitsha-Enugu highway is getting a serious facelift for the first time in some 20 years, that is, since the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) came to power in 1999. The Enugu-Port Harcourt Expressway is being reconstructed, in addition. There is a tinge of irony in all this. For the six years President Jonathan was in office, not even one federal road in the Southeast was fixed. Yet, the Igbo political operatives were fanatical over him, and in the process drove the Igbo people into a terrible political direction. They falsely claimed that Jonathan was Igbo. This shows the wretchedness of nepotistic and expedient politics. Portions of the Benin-Asaba Road and the Benin-Ore Road failed badly when Mike Onolemenem from Edo State was the Minister of Works, and nothing was done to fix them. And lest we forget, under Obasanjo’s presidency, federal roads in Yorubaland, including the Lagos-Otta Road, fell into the worst state of disrepair ever. To repeat the obvious, Jonathan could not fix any federal road in his home state of Bayelsa, let alone Rivers State where he spent much of his life.

    Today, it is a young man of Yoruba extraction who is reconstructing roads all over the country, regardless of the political leaning of Nigeria’s component parts. Fashola has always been very impressive. The good work he is doing is now cited by Igbo politicians for joining the All Progressives Congress en masse. As the saying goes in communication science, the best form of propaganda is to do the right thing. I am personally indebted to Fashola for energetically reconstructing roads which enabled me to prepare very well for my father’s funeral. He will always be in our thoughts and prayers. My father, wherever he may be now, must be pleased with Fashola.

     

    • Umenzekwe is a Lagos-based businessman

  • Fashola calls for regular collaboration with DISCOs

    The Minister of Works, Power and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, has called on stakeholders to ensure regular consultations with Electricity Distribution Companies (DISCOs) on power distribution.

    Fashola made the call when he visited the Omotosho Power Plant in Okitipupa local government area of Ondo State on Friday.

    The minister, who met with stakeholders, called for collaborative efforts with DISCOs on provision of adequate information on where power was needed at different points in time.

    He said, “At anytime, power is being generated and it must be consumed since there is no storage facility for power.

    “Once the power is generated without being consumed, it affects their facility and that is the reason why there is continuous adjustment for generation.

    “There should be synergy and communication between the power companies and DISCOs for even power distribution and to know the peak period of consumption of power both for domestic purposes and industrial usage.

    “In most cases, the peak period for domestic purposes starts at about 5:30 p.m. when everybody returns from work.

    “The peak period for industrial or official use starts by 9:00 a.m.

    “Stakeholders in the sector must align on their responsibilities to meet the demand of the consumers.”

    He said the host community would begin to enjoy full power supply from the plant by April when the first phase would be unveiled.

    NAN