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Tag: Fashola

  • FG paid N300bn for projects – Fashola

    FG paid N300bn for projects – Fashola

    The Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, claimed on Tuesday the government has paid N300 billion for various projects since the budget was passed, saying the ministry received N102 billion from the fund.

    Fashola, who spoke at a Town Hall/Policy Dialogue for Good Governance organised by the Alumni Association of the National Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies (AANI), assured Nigerians that despite the paucity of fund, the administration is determined to meet the yearnings of the people.

    The meeting, which was also attended by the ministers of Agriculture and Rural Development, Finance, Information and Culture, Budget and National Planning and Foreign Affairs, was the sixth in the series of the town hall meetings.

    The ministers took time to brief the audience on what the Federal Government was doing in their various ministries.

    Traditional rulers, members of the Diplomatic Corps and Civil Society Organisations, among others, attended the meeting.

    Fashola said he inherited 206 uncompleted road projects across the country, nothing that contractors had abandoned the projects due to non- payments.

    The minister, however, said the trend had changed and the contractors mobilized back to site.

    “We are mindful that it is a tough time, but life will get back to normal. We are not a repository of knowledge, so we are willing to hear from you and make amends,’’ he stated.

     

  • FG will not tolerate substandard installations – Fashola

    FG will not tolerate substandard installations – Fashola

    The Federal Government on Tuesday said it would no longer condone substandard electrical installations and activities of quacks in the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI).

    The Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, stated this at the revalidation and certification of electrical installation contractors in the country.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that certification of contractors involved in electrical installations is a written document issued by the Nigerian Electricity Management Services Agency (NEMSA) to qualified electrical contractors.

    The certification is based on the acquisition of competency, technical skills and expertise by contractors that undertake inspection and certification of electrical installations in the country.

    Fashola, represented by the Minster for State for Power, Works and Housing, Alhaji Mustapha Shehu, said the life of every Nigerian was important to government, hence the certification of electrical installation contractors.

    He said it was the responsibility of government to ensure that Nigerians did not lose their lives and property while assessing electricity.

    The minister said the certification signified the federal government’s commitment to standard and best practices in the power sector, adding that the certification was in the interest of Nigerians.

  • Govt ‘ll respect court’s tariff decision, says Fashola

    Govt ‘ll respect court’s tariff decision, says Fashola

    The Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola yesterday reacted to the recent court judgment which outlawed the 2015 electricity tariff increase of distribution companies (DisCos).

    He said Nigeria will play by existing rules governing her power sector at the same time respect the rulings of her courts.

    He spoke in Abuja when 14 solar power investors signed their respective Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) with the Nigeria Bulk Electricity Trading Plc (NBET) for the building of 1,125 megawatts (Mw) solar stations in 11 states.

    Justice Idris Abubakar of a Federal High Court in Lagos had overturned the tariff which was approved for the DisCos by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC).

    According to him, even though the court disbanded the tariff and NERC was contesting it, the government will maintain its dual obligation to protect electricity consumers and operators in the sector.

    The minister said electricity consumers in the country must come to the reality that the rates charged by the DisCos in their respective networks will never remain permanent.

    He said they will continue to respond to extant economic realities and indices from which they are calculated. He noted that they can either go up or come down depending on these indices.

    He stated that Nigerians erroneously believed the 2013 privatisation of the power sector was going to bring an immediate end to the sector’s challenges and dearth of public electricity in the country.

  • Fashola insists on compliance with Employees’ Compensation Act

    Fashola insists on compliance with Employees’ Compensation Act

    The Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola has vowed to lead the campaign for compliance with the 2010 Federal Workmens’ Compensation Act by government contractors to ensure protection of their workers.

    This, he said would encourage commitment and dedication among workers.

    The 2010 Federal Workmen’s Compensation Act, which repealed and replaced the 2004 legislation, makes provision for insurance cover for workmen in respect of occupational disease(s) (arising out of exposure to risk factors), injuries from accidents at the workplace or in the course of employment.

    Fashola, who was Guest Speaker at Session Four of this year’s National Insurance Conference in Abuja, spoke on the “Expected Role of Insurance in Infrastructural development” as part of the overall theme of “Expanding National Resources and Infrastructure in Challenging Times”, said he would use his position to insist that all the state Controllers of Works take steps to demand and ensure that all government contractors provide proof of compliance with the Law.

    He told the distinguished audience at the Congress Hall of the Transcorp Hilton: “In my current role as minister, I can only offer now that I will be using this platform to insist that all our state Controllers should take steps from today to demand and ensure that all our contractors provide proof of compliance with this Law, by taking out insurance policy for their workers and I will do my best to ensure compliance and protection for Nigerian workers”.

    The Minister, who wondered how many of the various government  contractors or private companies have such policies, added: “It seems to me that insurance practitioners have a role to play here, by designing policies that are appropriately priced and by promptly responding to claims in order to boost confidence in the business of insurance”.

    Speaking on the topic, “Expected Role of insurance in Infrastructural Development”, the Minister said there was need for the practitioners to be more innovative, entrepreneurial and embracing of the diverse needs of the country’s “big and promising economy”.

    According to him, the role of insurance practitioners goes beyond providing performance bonds given to ensure that contractors discharged their responsibility; to embracing health insurance that guaranteed access to the healthcare facility that was built as well as housing programmes, which according to him, would provide “a potential market of opportunities by way of performance bonds and mortgage insurance policies as a start”.

    Fashola said the time was ripe for insurance practitioners to lead the change they would wish to see in the industry, pointing out that healthcare infrastructure such as hospitals were only the beginning of the more important health insurance that guaranteed access to the already built healthcare facility.

    Urging practitioners to see the possibilities in insuring schools, government buildings, roads and bridges as frontiers for deepening insurance practice, Fashola said there is also provision for compulsory insurance of existing buildings, which he pointed out, would help to curtail the incidence of building collapse if it cannot totally eliminate them.

    On how the insurance industry could act as a change agent in the current efforts to rebuild the economy, Fashola reminded the practitioners that insurance was a component and important part of the finance subsector. He however, expressed regrets that the industry “has probably played a second role to banking, and without intending to be judgmental has not optimised the opportunities for growth, expansion and inclusion”.

  • Azura power project ‘ll boost economy, says Fashola

    Azura power project ‘ll boost economy, says Fashola

    The Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola  has listed the positive spinoffs that would result from Azura Power Plant in Benin, Edo State. He said such projects across the country are in line with current efforts by the government to achieve increased power generation to run the engine of the economy.

    Fielding questions from newsmen after a tour of the facility, which is largely a private sector initiative, Fashola expressed pleasure at the progress of work on the site and said spinoffs such as supply of materials, and employment of members of the local community were positive signs that the efforts of government are impacting positively on the people.

    The minister, who recalled that the approvals and agreements required by the private companies to source for funds for the project could not be signed for more than one year before the current administration assumed office, commended President Muhammadu Buhari for finally signing the required approvals which enabled the investors to commence construction. He added that since construction work started, there has been visible positive impact especially on the host community.

    Fashola ‘s Special Adviser on Communications, Mr. Hakeem Bello made this known in a statement yesterday.

    Speaking about the positive spinoffs of the project on the host community, Fashola described it as “a very strong and positive sign of the impact of the decision of Mr. President” who, according to him, “directed that all the approvals necessary in carrying out this project be given immediately after he took office.

  • Kaduna power plant to be inaugurated in 2017 – Fashola

    The Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, on Wednesday said the 215 Megawatt (MW) Dual Fired Kaduna Power Plant will be completed in June 2017.

    Fashola gave the assurance after he inspected the power project in Kaduna, the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports.

    He said the contract was awarded in 2009 and was expected to be completed within 36 months.

    According to him, the project cannot be completed as schedule due to inadequate budgetary allocation by the previous administration.

    The minister said work had since resumed at the site in Kudenden Area of Kaduna, adding that the project would be completed in the second quarter of 2017.

    Fashola commended the state governor, Nasiru El-Rufai, for his determination to ensure the timely completion of the project.

    El-Rufai, who accompanied the minister, said the state government had sourced for N7.5 billion loan from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to ensure prompt completion of the project.

  • Reps, Fashola row over N35b housing budget

    Reps, Fashola row over N35b housing budget

    The House of Representatives Committee on Housing yesterday expressed doubts over the preparedness of the Ministry of Power, Works and Housing to implement the N35billion housing component of the Ministry’s budget.

    Chairman of the Committee, Mustapha Bala (APC, Kano) during an interactive session with the Ministry on the status of the budget implementation, doubted the competence of the Ministry to implement the National Housing project, six months into the fiscal year.

    He became agitated when the  Minister, Babatunde Fashola in his presentation, said the Ministry was still in the process of sorting out the designs for the project.

    He said: “What has the Ministry been doing since November last year when the budget was presented  till now that appropriate designs are not ready? You have not even advertised it.

    “Are you not competent, or what, because you ought to have completed the design by February so that once the budget was passed, you commence implementation. Design should not take more than 15 days because your experts in the Ministry have been doing it for years.

    “By the time you start this project, you will have just about three months left in the year, even if the budget is extended to March 2017, that will be just six months.”

    The Committee also wondered why the Ministry could not dispense with redundant and non-performing PPPs, wondering if there was a framework and criteria for qualification.

    In his response, Fashola said the blame should not be heaped on the Ministry.

    He said: “That is a strange question because a bulk sum was proposed in the budget for the National Housing project  and we asked states in need  to access it willingly but the House insisted that it must go round.

    “The result is what we are seeing  now, many did not respond  because housing needs of each state differs, taking into cognisance the role migratory factor plays here.”

    He also said the Ministry should be commended rather than criticised for the work it has done on the project. “The Ministry should be commended and  not condemned because the budget is inadequate.

    “As a result of that, we are focusing on sustainable housing plan that works rather than rushing the budget, affordability and slum prevention is key to this design.

    “Other countries that had housing programme decades ago did not even have 100 per cent home owners but they have a near uniformity of designs. By the time we go full circle, we won’t be talking of N35billion but hundreds of billions

    “Why it took so long for the  design to be ready, infrastructures-roads, sewage disposal, water and others   have to be planned into the housing and that’s what the Ministry is doing.

    “To say all these should be done in three months is difficult because we need a plan that will accomodate cultures and other peculariaries of each state. Our designs are based on feedback.

    “I appeal to the House that we look at the larger picture, even if you are not impressed with my staff, I  have a different opinion.”

    Fashola, who said he inherited a 2012 Housing Plan that had no implementation blue print entered into by previous administrations could not solve the country’s housing challenges.

  • Fashola: Second Niger Bridge, Zik’s mausoleum ‘ll be completed

    Fashola: Second Niger Bridge, Zik’s mausoleum ‘ll be completed

    •Minister advises host communities against hostility to contractors.

    The Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola (SAN), has pledged that the Second Niger Bridge and Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe’s (Zik’s) mausoleum will be completed by the Muhammadu Buhari administration.

    The minister spoke yesterday in Onitsha, Anambra State, when he visited the bridge, Zik’s mausoleum in Onitsha and Enugu Expressway.

    He was accompanied by Anambra State Governor Willie Obiano, traditional rulers and top government officials, among others.

    Fashola said the Federal Government was committed to completing the projects, adding that when completed, the bridge would improve and accelerate the economic prosperity, transportation and exchange of goods and services across the country.

    He said: “I am here in pursuant of the commitment of the Federal Government and that of President Buhari to complete the bridge.

    “It will give relief to the First Niger Bridge and ensure that it is kept in a good state of repair and maintenance.”

    Fashola said the Federal Government would compensate genuine land owners and ensure that the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) was addressed.

    The minister said the bridge was Federal Government’s first move towards a Public Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement with some investors.

    He urged the host communities to show commitment to the projects and avoid hostility towards the contractors.

    Fashola said it was better to dialogue with the government while work continued on the projects in the interest of the country than for the residents to confront the government.

    On the late Dr. Azikiwe’s mausoleum in Onitsha, the minister assured that the abandoned project would be completed by the Buhari administration.

    He said it was one little way to appreciate those who had served the country.

    Obiano hoped the Second Niger Bridge would be completed in good time to alleviate the suffering of its users.

    The governor hailed the Federal Government for refunding about N43.8 billion the state government spent to build and rehabilitate some federal roads.

    He urged the Federal Government to consider the completion of the Umunya axis of the Enugu-Onitsha Expressway to avoid accidents.

    Obiano also called for the completion of the Nnewi sub-power station, saying it would be beneficial to the industrial town and neighbouring Imo State.

     

  • Fashola: Lagos-Ibadan expressway, Second Niger Bridge, others ready in three years

    Fashola: Lagos-Ibadan expressway, Second Niger Bridge, others ready in three years

    The minister of Power, Works and Housing Babatunde Fashola has said that the Federal Government is committed to finishing all ongoing projects within three years.

    Fashola spoke at the weekend after inspecting work at the Loko-Oweto Bridge over River Benue, which connects Loko and Oweto communities in Nasarawa and Benue states.

    He said the Federal Government would make funds available to pay contractors as soon as they delivered completed projects.

    “The Federal Government of Nigeria and President Muhammadu Buhari have expressed very clear commitment to finish the ongoing and abandoned projects.

    “We are focusing on completion of ongoing projects; this is one of the many ongoing projects.

    “Lagos-Ibadan expressway is one of them; Kano-Maiduguri is one of them; Ilorin-Jebba is one of them and the Second Niger Bridge is one of them.

    “All those projects now, the contractors are moving back to sites and work is beginning. Gradually over the next three years we would complete many of them’’, the minister said.

    Fashola expressed the confidence that the resumption of construction activities would stimulate expansion of infrastructure, create jobs and generate commercial opportunities for the people.

    He said when completed, the Loko-Oweto Bridge would boost socio-economic activities in Nasarawa State and Benue.

    “You will see those who lost their jobs; they would come back to work. You would see increased merchandising and supply of building materials.

    “When this project is completed, it would open up these communities; connect Nasarawa State and Benue; farmers would benefit from the movement and transportation of their farm produce.

    “I am optimistic that we would get this project completed in 2018,’’ Fashola noted.

    News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Loko-Oweto Bridge contract was awarded to RCC Nig. Ltd. in November 2011 at N36. 1 billion with original completion date of Nov. 15, 2015.

    The project was stalled in 2014 due to lack of funding and currently, at a revised contract sum of N51.6 billion, the project is scheduled for completion in 2018.

  • Fashola and electricity tariff

    SIR: As  a Nigerian very  interested in seeing the nation  get  out  of the doldrums of  constant  power failure  and its  dire  and  negative  consequences on our economic   development and   the  welfare  of  Nigerians, I  had heard  many  things  on the issue of privatization and the emergence   of  the distribution  companies (Discos)  saddled  with delivery   of electricity after  the reform of   power  sector. The latest was when the minister in charge of power,  BabatundeRajiFashola SAN told the House of  Representatives Committee that had  asked him  to come and explain  the nation-wide blackout  that the government  had   legally sold the PHCN  and that  the  new  tariffs announced early  this  year  would  eventually  benefit  the Nigerian consumer  of  electricity.   Of particular interest to me was his blunt rebuttal of the mistaken notion of the lawmakers that the privatization involving the Discos was less than legal.

    Again, the impression  one had  on the new  tariffs  as peddled  by  the trade unions  was that  the Discos were guilty  sharks   fishing  in Nigerian power  waters illegally  and milking Nigerians dry  with  high  tariffs  without  supplying  the expected  electricity. Now,  the minister  of  power  has come out  to defend  the new electricity  tariffs  as  cost -reflective  and structured  to create  liquidity  for the industry and make the discos viable  as a going  concerns,  to enable them recoup  their  huge investment at  a given and monitored  time,  while  guaranteeing customer  satisfaction. That  to me is quite  cheering  news  although  there  are  still  some  obstacles  in the way  in  spite  of  the bold and patriotic  posture  of  the minister supporting  both  the legality  of the discos, power  privatization, as  well  as the legality  of the new tariffs  and their technical  cost  reflective  nature.

    The  first  obstacle  which the  minister  should confront  is  the  suspension  by  the  Senate   of the new tariffs  approved for  the  Discos  by the  Nigerian Electricity  Regulatory  Commission – NERC –the  regulator  of  the electricity  industry  in Nigeria. Now that the  minister  has  stated  that  the tariffs  are correct  and legal,  he should  impress that  on  the  Senate  so  that  that lawmaking  body sticks to  its duties  of  making laws  for  Nigerian  people  so  that  electricity  can  be regulated by  the institution empowered  by  law  to  regulate  it, which  is, NERC.

    In  this, the  minister  should  have  the  support  of  all  right-thinking  Nigerians who  knew what  led  to the wrong  decision of the Senate  on  the new  tariffs.  Now  that  the minister, a  Senior Advocate of Nigeria, has  thrown  the weight  of the law  as well  as his office  behind  the legitimacy  of  the Discos as well  as  the legality  and desirability of the new  tariffs,  the Senate should  retrace  its steps and rescind  its illegal stoppage  of  the new  tariffs.  This is even more so as   NERC has already taken the  Senate   to court on  the  matter.  That  is the path  of  honour  and the  only  way  to  make  electricity  work  in Nigeria  as the power  minister  has already  demonstrated   both   in  word   and  deed.

     

    • Tunji Aderibigbe,

    Ilorin, Kwara State.