The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Fashola

  • FEC okays $39.9m for Nigeria-Cameroon link bridge

    The Federal Executive Council (FEC) on Wednesday approved $39.9 million for construction of the Cameroon-Nigeria link bridge.

    The Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, disclosed this to State House correspondents at the end of  the FEC meeting chaired by Acting President Yemi Osinbajo at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

    He was with the Minister of Information, Lai Mohammed and outgoing Minister of Environment, Amina Mohammed at the briefing.

    Fashola said the project is under the African Development Bank (AfDB) support.

    He said: “We presented a memo to construct the Cameroon-Nigeria link bridge, at Ikot Efiom under the African Development Bank (AfDB) support for improving relationship between Cameroon and Nigeria post the ICJ judgement over Bakassi and council approved that bridge.

    “It is part of the link road between Enugu Abakiliki way which is already completed and part of larger Lagos-Mumbasa Highway.

    He also said that FEC approved N32 billion for Kaduna Eastern bypass highway.

    The minister added: “We also presented a memo for the resuscitation and completion of the Kaduna Eastern bypass highway, which was started in 2002 and was initially planned to be completed within three years. But 15 years after, it remains uncompleted. Council also approved the programmes to complete it now and it is a 50 kilometer highway and dual carriage way with nine bridges over rivers and rail crossings there.

    “The project was first awarded in 2002 at N16 billion, we have had to get approval for N22 billion verbatim and so that takes that project cost now to N32 billion.”

     

  • Paucity of fund not major challenge to completion of road projects – Fashola

    Paucity of fund not major challenge to completion of road projects – Fashola

    Paucity of fund is not the major challenge to the completion of ongoing federal government’s road projects, Minister of Power, Works and Housing Babatunde Fashola has declared
    He spoke to reporters yesterday in Port Harcourt after an inspection tour of ongoing road projects in the South-South zone.
    “There is no problem of paucity of fund on this road again; this road is now a function of man hours.
    “If you have all the money needed to construct this road, you would not finish it today.
    “So let us understand that these roads are built long and wide, and so will take years to be completed because roads are connecting several states.
    “As we are building, it will get better but funding is not going to be a problem on this road again because we make sure that the contractor are paid,” he said.
    He said the contractors handling the road projects would be paid based on presentation of certificate of performance.
    Fashola cautioned contractors against the use of budgetary provisions as excuse not to be on site, adding that the budget had not solved the problem in the past.
    “As at the time we had money, when a barrel of oil sells for 100 dollars per barrel, we did not take the issue of roads seriously, because the capital budget then use to be 15 per cent.
    “It is Buhari’s administration that is increasing capital budget to 30 per cent, which means that this government is taking the issue of roads seriously and that is why we are here.
    “Contractors are coming to site after three years of lay off and as you pay a contractor, you are invariably bring people back to work, and that is the commitment that I made,” he said.
    The minister expressed dismay over failure of the past administration to fund the projects it originated.
    “You heard the contractors saying they were not able to continue with the projects because funds were not released until December, 2016.
    “You also heard from all the sites we visited that contractors were not paid for three to four years and that was at a time we were having income of 100 dollars per barrel of oil.
    “People were laid off by the contractors. They could not continue the projects, so the foundation for the recession was built three years.
    “In spite of the fall in oil income, the Buhari government is now saying that whatever it will take, we must pay contractors and that is why they have all returned to sit,” he added.
    The projects visited by the minister during tour in Rivers were the Aba-Port Harcourt dual carriage way and the Bodo-Bonny bridge projects.
    The minister said the Bodo-Bonny bridge when completed would be the only road linking the people of Ogoni land to Bonny Island.
    He said the project was awarded several years ago but the contractor abandoned the site because it was not funded.
    He said the federal government made provision to finance the project in partnership with the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) in the 2017 budget proposal.

  • Fashola disowns N2b ‘regional housing’ padded budget

    Fashola disowns N2b ‘regional housing’ padded budget

    Minister of Power, Works and Housing Babatunde Fashola yesterday disowned alleged N2 billion inserted in the proposed 2017 budget of the housing sector.
    The minister, who was defending the details of the N64.99 billion proposed capital vote for the Housing Sector in the 2017 budget before the Senate Committee on Housing, said he knew nothing about N2 billion listed against “Regional Housing Scheme”.
    A member of the committee spotted the curious insertion and sought Fashola’s explanation about how it got into the budget proposal.
    The minister promptly disowned it, saying he knew nothing about the insertion.
    Apart from the N64.99 billion proposal, Fashola requested approval for additional $12 million (about N6 billion) to enable the country settle outstanding commitment to the Housing Development and Financing Organisation known as Shelter Afrik.
    The organisation is said to operate under the sponsorship of the African Union (AU) and has about 44 African countries as members
    The member countries pool resources together and donate to members to build houses.
    Fashola told the committee the need to pay the money because the organisation was threatening to suspend Nigeria from its fold.
    To avoid the embarrassment, Fashola said the money should be approved and added to the Housing Sector 2017 budget proposal.
    The minister said over the years, Nigeria has not settled her obligation to the organisation.
    Chairman of the committee, Senator Barnabas Gemade promised to forward the request to the Appropriation Committee with the aim of “padding the Housing Sector proposal”

  • Human error responsible for most road crashes, says Fashola

    Human error responsible for most road crashes, says Fashola

    •’N1.05b to fix potholes’

    Apart from condition of roads, human errors were majorly responsible for highway accidents, Minister of Power, Works and Housing Babatunde Fashola said yesterday.
    Fashola added that though there were rules on the utilisation of automobiles, night drivers should take enough rest before embarking on night journeys.
    The minister said this during inspection of the Kaduna-Abuja road project, ahead of the Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport (NAIA) closure, Abuja.
    He explained that the N1.05 billion road project awarded to CGC Construction Company was solely to fix potholes on the Kaduna-Abuja expressway.
    Fashola said the actual construction of the dual carriage way will commence as soon as the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) approve the project.
    His words: “One day, I will wish no traffic accident will be reported on all roads in Nigeria. That is the day I always wish for. Unfortunately, that does not happen. I continue to wish for it but we have to work for it.
    “We saw an accident on the road involving a heavy duty truck. Clearly, it happened at night. Those who have to drive heavy duty trucks at night must get as much sleep as they can in the day. Many of these things happen as a result of human error.
    “Let us be clear what is going on is an emergency intervention essentially to remove all the potholes to reduce the dangerous portions and eliminate hazards, which cause accidents for motorists on this road.
    “There is a major contract provision that is going through procurement for the essential reconstruction of pavements of this road. It was expanded in the early 1990s from single carriageway to double carriage. There is no indication that any major repair has taken place since 20 years.”
    The minister restated that the contract was to cover potholes covering a total of 620 kilometres from both sides of the dual carriageway.
    He emphasised the need to rebuild the road considering its long time usage for over 20 years without any form of repair.
    Fashola, who stated that he gets weekly reports on state of work on the project, added that the visit was to inspect the level of work done.
    He gave assurance to ensure quick completion of the project, adding that the Federal Ministry of Aviation would keep to the six weeks deadline set for the runway repair.

  • FEC okays N21.5bn for road, power projects

    The Federal Executive Council (FEC) on Wednesday approved N21.5 billion for the construction of Ilorin-Omu Aran-Kabba road to link Kwara and Kogi States.

    It also approved N589 million for consultancy services for line route studies and environmental/social impact assessment towards accessing Japanese International Corporation Agency’s loan.

    These were disclosed by the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, at the end of FEC meeting on Wednesday.

    He said: “Council considered and approved the construction of Ilorin-Omu Aran-Kabba Road, Section I in order to complement ongoing works on the Kabba-Egbe Road to link Kwara and Kogi States.

    “The justification for the memo and consequent approval is consistent with our promise to continue to reduce travel time, to ease the cost of doing business and the cost of goods and services.  This project is for N21billion.

    “The second approval was for consultancy services for professionals to conduct line route studies, environmental/social impact assessment and resettlement action plan as well environmental/social management plan in order for us to access the Japanese International Corporation Agency’s loan to support TCN to continue its transmission grid expansion programme.

    “Before we start the construction, we must do an assessment of the routes that some of the transmission lines will pass through.

    “The projects for which approval has been obtained from Council cover areas like Arigbajo, Abeokuta, Olorunshogo, Ikeja West, Oshogbo, Ogijo, Ikorodu, Shagamu and part of Benin towards Edo State continuous to Ondo State around Omotosho as well as Agbara and Badagry.

    “When completed and construction takes place, it will help us in the evacuation of power from the Olorunshogo Power Plant to supply industrial clusters in Ogun and part of Lagos State. The consultant service for the three is for about N589 million.”

  • Saraki, Dogara queries N2.7tr power sector spending without result

    Saraki, Dogara queries N2.7tr power sector spending without result

    The leadership of the National Assembly on Tuesday decried the country’s dilapidated power sector infrastructure despite government’s huge investment in the industry since 1999.

    President of the Senate, Bukola Saraki , blamed the prevailing  power supply crises  in the country on failure of successive governments to properly address the rot in the sector.

    He also faulted the government’s decision to sell power generation and distribution companies to persons that lacked the technical and financial capacities to run the sector.

    “Wherever we go in the world, the failure is on all of us, whether we are in the private sector or those of us in the public sector.

    “We must be prepared to put Nigeria first and the government itself must be sincere with every decision that they have to take,” the Senate president said.

    The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, regretted that Nigerians have not been positively impacted with the over N2.7 trillion invested in the power sector in the last 16 years.

    Arguing that huge investment had only bought darkness to Nigeria, Dogara said it has become imperative for Nigerians to put more pressure on the Federal Government and other stakeholders for realistic steps to revamp the electricity industry.

    Saraki and Dogara spoke at a two-day stakeholders’ dialogue on “Nigerian Power Challenge: A Legislative Intervention.”

    The Speaker said, “Perhaps, the most important question is what happened to the N2.74 trillion spent on the sector from 1999-2015?

    “Why is it that the more we spend on the power sector, the more darkness we attract?

    “Why are most of the companies licensed by Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission not able to start their projects?”

    However, the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, said there is no going back on the power sector privatisation policy.

    He said the solution was to strengthen the privatisation policy by putting the right structures in place to encourage investors.

  • We’ve received 53 per cent of our allocation, says Fashola

    We’ve received 53 per cent of our allocation, says Fashola

    Minister of Power, Works and Housing Babatunde Fashola has disclosed that the works sector received only 53 per cent of the over N300 billion appropriated to it 2016.
    He spoke at the ongoing 2017 budget defence before the Senate Committee on Works yesterday in Abuja
    Fashola said although the entire ministry was allocated N456. 94 billion in the 2016 budget, works section had N301.85 billion allocation.
    He, however, said the ministry’s capacity to implement the budget had been directly related to the monies released to it.
    “It is not the question of lack of capacity but the question of how much revenue the country earns and how they can give to us to pursue our work.
    “We received only 53 per cent on the allocation; there is the possibility that we will get more before the current budget fully winds down,” he said.
    Fashola notified the committee that the proposal of the ministry for the return of contractors to work was progressively implemented.
    “I doubt that there is any state in the federation where there is no road project going on, whether it is our own direct project or constituency project,” he said.
    According to him, the budget is working but more needs to be done in terms of continued funding of infrastructure to recover lost roads.
    Earlier, Chairman of the committee, Sen. Kabiru Gaya, had said that budget defence symbolised the commitment of the National Assembly in the pursuit of national economic wellbeing through the road map of key infrastructure, like roads.
    While clearing the “padding misconception’’ of the 2016 budget, Gaya said “the budget was brought to us as a draft. We are to amend whatever is to be amended.
    “The budget is a draft, we will do our work. The National Assembly could not have been said to have padded the budget.
    “By law, it has constitutional rights to appraise the budget proposal sent to it. It will therefore be a misnomer in the process of considering the budget to be seen as padding.”
    He, however, emphasized the importance of road infrastructure to the economic wellbeing of the country and called for the rehabilitation of dilapidated roads across the country.
    “This will help to promote national economic growth and prosperity,” he said.
    The chairman said that major challenge in the development and maintenance of road infrastructure was inadequate funding.
    He said that funding and investment needs of the nation’s key infrastructural deficit could not be considerably met by relying on solely on budget.
    “We must explore more resourceful ways of delivering quality service in this sector.
    “ We must consider alternative sources of funding like public-private partnership and foreign investors to support the budget in the future,” he said.

  • TCN boss appointment not condition for AfDB loan – Fashola

    TCN boss appointment not condition for AfDB loan – Fashola

    The appointment of Mr. Usman Mohammed as interim Managing Director of Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) is not a condition for Africa Development Bank (AfDB) loan facility, the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, said on Monday.

    The AfDB had last week approved a $155 million loan for Economic and Power Sector Reform Programme (EPSERP) in the country.

    Fashola stated this when he appeared before the Joint Committee on Power on Monday in Abuja, the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports.

    The minister’s appearance followed a petition written to the Senate by workers under the aegis of the National Union of Electricity Employees and the Senior Staff Association of Electricity and Allied Companies.

    The workers had alleged that due process was not followed in the appointment of Mohammed as TCN chief.

    Fashola, however, denied the allegations that the appointment of Mohammed, who worked with AfDB was a form of collateral for the loan.

    He said the appointment was designed to ensure responsiveness to the needs of generation and distribution companies in Nigeria.

    “The appointment of new TCN boss has nothing to do with lack of capacity. It has everything to do with the need to improve.

    “The transmission stations are the connectivity of sub stations and need to constantly interlink with themselves, have supervisory control and skills acquisition system that helps them perform optimally.

    “The engineers will not be able to do their work if the administrative sector that provides the tools budgeting and planning does not give them the tools to do their work,’’ the minister said.

  • Fashola, DisCos, others to discuss N800b debts

    Fashola, DisCos, others to discuss N800b debts

    The over N800 billion debts owed the 11 power distribution companies (DisCos) by Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) will take the centre at the next sectoral meeting scheduled for this month.
    The meeting, held monthly, will discuss problems hindering the growth of the sector and proffer solution to them.
    It was gathered that the debts are having a negative consequence on the operation of the sector, such that the DisCos are finding it difficult to operate without the money.
    Industry sources said the meeting, which is at the instance of the Minister of Power, Babatunde Fashola, would discuss the debts and proffer solution to it.
    It was also learnt that the meeting, which will be hosted in any of the five states under the watch of the Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company(IBED), will discuss issues such as improvement in power generation and distribution, metering and others that are vital to the growth of the sector.
    ‘’There is no doubt that the issue of the over N800billion debts would be discussed at the next meeting. The energy distribution entities are yet to show remarkable progress, due to poor funding. The firms are not happy, due to the fact that they are unable to finance some transactions because of low liquidity.’’ a source close to one of the DisCos said.
    The Chief Executive Officer, Eko Electricity Distribution Company (EKEDC), Oladele Amoda, said there was no investment in the sector, due to lack of fund.

    He said the rate at which operators were investing in the sector had gone down considerably, adding that banks were not lending to the industry.
    He urged the banks and investors to show interest in the industry, by injecting funds into the sector in order to make it competitive.
    According to him, the inability of the operators to re-invest in the sector is the bane of the industry, advising operators to galvanise the potential of the sector for improved performance.
    Fashola had at the last meeting in Lagos, urged power firms to meter their customers across the country.
    He said metering is important to the growth of the sector, advising the DisCos to solve financial problems bedeviling them, by providing meters to their customers. He said, due to lack of fund, the operators are unable to provide meters to their customers.

  • Fashola decries neglect of inter-state roads

    The Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, has expressed displeasure over the neglect of inter-state roads in some parts of the country in preference for inter-community roads.

    The minister expressed the view in a chat with journalists after inspecting the reconstruction work on Enugu-Port Harcourt Expressway and Aba-Ikot Ekpene Road in Abia, Thursday, the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports.

    Fashola, who earlier inspected federal road projects in Imo, said in the state, funds meant for the construction of the Owerri-Umuahia Road were deployed to building inter-community roads.

    He said there was no part of the country “where the Ministry of Power, Works and Housing is not doing one thing or another.”

    “But it is important to emphasise that in Imo State, for instance, in the past, funds that were perhaps meant to build inter-state roads, have gone into inter-community roads.

    “So we saw on our records Owerri-Umuahia Road under construction but the truth is that no work is going on there.

    “The work is going on in the roads leading to the villages instead of using the money to build Owerri-Umuahia Road, which connects two big economies down to Akwa Ibom and Enugu States and facilitate more trade,” he stated.