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Tag: RCC

  • Fed Govt orders RCC to reconstruct failed sections of Lokoja-Abuja road

    Fed Govt orders RCC to reconstruct failed sections of Lokoja-Abuja road

    Works Minister David Umahi has directed Reynolds Construct Company (RCC) to reconstruct the failed section of the Gada-Biyu Bridge bound 1 & 2 road on the Lokoja-Abuja.

    Stressing the durability of concrete roads, the minister stated that henceforth, there must be a reputable consultant to supervise road construction so that when roads fail, the government can hold them accountable.

    Umahi dropped the hint while inspecting Phase II of the Lokoja – Okene Road in Kogi State.

    He said: “We have so many failed portions on the road. They have to go round and give me the list of failed portions of the road before returning to work to reconstruct them, and stone base must be used, not dust base.

    “We must get a reputable consultant to supervise the road construction so that when the road fails, we can hold them accountable. Something must be done to change from the present situation of how we construct our roads; our roads should be constructed on concrete.”

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    Umahi also directed that his ministry should review the road projects executed by CGC Construction Company and revert to his office within seven days.

    He told some of the contractors who handled the roads he inspected that no one would increase contract price under him, and that as a single lane road must be followed to the end where the job is less than 50 per cent on any ongoing dual carriageway under construction.

    Some of the roads inspected include: dualisation of Abuja -Lokoja Road Section II, Sheda-Abaji; Gada Biyu bridge bound 1 & 2 Lokoja ; rehabilitation and construction of Abuja-Lokoja road; Lokoja-Benin Road; Okene-Auchi-Benin road (Kogi /Edo States ); Obajana junction-Benin road section II;  dualisation of Auchi–Ehor section II, Benin Way and Agbor-Ewu road project in Uromi, Edo State.

    Umahi restated his ministry’s commitment to the delivery of the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in the areas of road infrastructure.

  • Senate decries non completion of N48b national library 11 years after

    Senate decries non completion of N48b national library 11 years after

    The Senate on Tuesday described as unacceptable the failure of the federal government to complete the National Library after 11 years.

    The upper chamber resolved to urge the government to prioritize the funding and completion of the permanent site of the National Library of Nigeria in order to mitigate losses accruable to the project;

    It also mandated its Committee on Education to meet with the Ministers of Education and the Federal Capital Territory and the National Librarian/Chief Executive Officer of the National Library of Nigeria to adopt an appropriation strategy that would ensure the completion of the project starting from the 2018 Appropriation Bill.

    It further advised the Government to be more strategic in the award of contracts with a view to embarking on only projects that can be adequately financed to the tune of its budgetary appropriation.

    The resolutions followed the adoption of a motion entitled “The preventable economic loss and national embarrassment arising from the failure of the federal government to complete the National Library after 11 years, “sponsored by Senator Olugbenga Ashafa (Lagos East).

    Ashafa in his lead debate noted that the National Library building project was conceptualized by the Federal Government in 2002 but awarded in 2006 to Messrs Reynolds Construction Company (RCC) at the sum of N8.590 Billion with a project timeline of 22 Months.

    He said that while the company commenced work on the project in April 2006, it could not proceed due to the failure of Government to release sufficient funds for the completion of the project, leading to its being revised three times over the period.

    Ashafa observed that a comprehensive report recently detailed the pitfalls of the project as follows:

    “That after a series of false starts leading to the initial suspension of work on the project, sometime in 2009, the project scope was reduced from the initial 8-floor plan to 5 floors and the contract sum of the reduced scope was reviewed upward to N17 billion from the original sum of N8.590 billion;

    “The Bureau of Public Procurement issued a compliance certificate of ’no objection’ on the review and the Federal Executive Council approved the revised sum. The completion period for the revised project was made 21 months effective from July 2010. The project could not be completed again due to paucity of funds; and

    “That in 2012, the presidency requested for the return of the project back to the full scope. A presidential anticipatory letter with reference number NLO/C.62/Vl/66 was sent to NLN (National Library of Nigeria) dated October 11, 2012, with a directive to CIA to instruct the contractor to revert to full scope.

    “By then, the contractor was about concluding arrangement for roofing at the fifth floor. The initially reviewed sum of N23.153 billion for the full scope was submitted by the consultants to the Ministry of Education but it was never processed.

    “In February 2013, the contractor requested for the extension of time and reviewed the contract sum upward to N48 billion.

    “Observed that despite the importance of this National Library, the project has been poorly funded since its inception.”

    The Lagos East lawmaker listed the allocation to the project between 2008 and 2015 as reported as follows: i. 2008N2, 269,197,198. 00 appropriated N1, 217,401,308.05 was released;

    2009N2. 4 billion budgeted and N2, 367,968,402 14 released; 2010 N18 billion budgeted N708, 301,501.34 was released; 2011 N758, 549,771.00 was earmarked but N491, 230,136.70 was released; v. 2012 N2 billion budgeted and N1, 081,448,443.00 was released; 2013 N4 billion was budgeted and N3, 164,726,518.19 was released; 2014 N22 billion was budgeted and N555, 697,923.52 was released; and 2015 N1.4 billion was budgeted, but N7 million was released.

    Ashafa said that the Senate should be worried that the continuous failure to properly fund the project within the specified period would cause the government losses modestly estimated to be in the range of 40 to 50billion naira and that if this failure to fund the project expeditiously continues, it might cost the Government even more in the long run.

    He also the Senate should be disturbed that 57 years after the birth of Nigeria and with trillions of naira sunk in the development of Abuja, the National Library of Nigeria still operates from a rented building because it does not have a permanent site;

    He said that the National Library is of critical importance to the country because it would serve as an important intellectual monument, representing the value placed on information, learning, knowledge, culture and history amongst others.

    He added: “Further disturbed that the failure of prioritization of this project by successive governments, is a direct reflection and metaphor for the almost inexistent premium we place on knowledge and intellectual capital as a country. This trend must stop and we must rise once again to the occasion;

    “Concerned that in View of the population explosion taking place in Nigeria, we no longer have the luxury of relegating knowledge and information amongst the populace.

    “1n the world that we are living in now, knowledge is the new black gold and we must not only diversify our economy into agriculture and solid-minerals but most importantly migrate wholly into a knowledge-based economy. In achieving this, Government must be focused on providing public access to quality knowledge and information;

    “Worried that the future of generations yet unborn is in jeopardy, as a failure to properly fund the National Library Project would greatly affect the capacity of the country in the area of proper documentation of historical documents, artefacts and archiving in general. Our heritage as a people is now at risk of extinction if we don’t move now.

    He said that the Senate should be disturbed that “this failure of strategic planning is not peculiar to the National Library Project alone but has become the bane of various capital projects across the country, amounting to a significant number of abandoned projects and preventable economic loss.”

    Other senators who contributed to the debate expressed disappointment that the projected remained non-completed years after it was initiated.

  • Contractors handling Benin-Auchi-Abuja road to get arrest warrant – Edo Assembly

    Contractors handling Benin-Auchi-Abuja road to get arrest warrant – Edo Assembly

    Edo State House of Assembly has threatened to issue arrest warrant on the contractors handling the dualisation of the Benin-Auchi-Abuja express road if they failed to appear before it next week Monday.

    The contractors handling the Road dualisation are Dantata and Saowe, Reynold Construction Company, RCC, and Mother Cat

    Speaker Kabiru Adjoto gave the threat when the state Controller of Works, Mr Oke Oweh, appeared before the lawmakers to explain progress work on the road.

    Motorists traveling to Ekpoma, Auchi and Owan has to go through Ondo or Delta states to get to their locations.

    Adjoto lambasted Oweh for failing to give them the amount which the contract was awarded and its duration.

    He regretted that the Contractors deliberately ignored the directive of the House and warned that failure of the Contractors to appear before the House on the 16th of October, would compel the House to issue a bench warrant of arrest on the contractors.

    According to Adjoto, “Next week Monday we will like the contractors handling the road project to appear before us. And we expect you to put into writing details of the entire transactions because our people cannot continue to suffer untold hardship along that road. If the contractors fail to appear we will order for their arrest.

    “There has been a public outcry, over the death-trapped nature of Benin Auchi Road, resulting to lost of lives and property, as well as man hours stifling the economy of the country, all these, would now be a thing of the past, the Speaker enthused”.

    The Controller informed the lawmakers that work is currently ongoing on the road.

    According to him, “You now get to Ekpoma from Benin in one hour and we are still working hard to get the Auchi end done.

     

  • Benin/Auchi Highway: FG mobilises RCC back to site

    Reynod Construction Company (RCC) has returned to site preparatory to the resumption of work on the dualisation of the Benin/Ehor section of the Benin/Auchi/Okene highway.

    Work started on the highway in 2012 but was abandoned in 2014 after the contractors moved out of site on account of non-payment of its money by the federal government.

    Mr Denis Orji, the Federal Controller of Works told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), in Benin yesterday that government mobilised the contractors back to site.

    Thus, more than 300 workers that were laid off after they closed site in 2014 have been reabsorbed.

    The controller said the first task before the construction company was to see that the potholes and failed sections of the highway are fixed.

    “Though their schedule is between Benin/Ehor sections of the road, they are to ensure that the section up to Iruekpen is passable by carrying out maintenance work.

    “If you go through the road as we speak, you will see that the company has done a lot of work on the area they are maintaining, what is left for them mainly is to put bitumen.

    “You will see that they have moved equipment back to site, but by next week, you will see more of the equipment,” he said.

    It would be recalled that the Federal Government, under Goodluck Jonathan administration, awarded contract for the dualisation of the highway from Benin to Lokoja.

    Four different construction companies were awarded contract for the four lots/sections up to Lokoja.

    The road, particularly the highway between Benin to Okene has become very bad. (NAN)

  • Julius Berger, RCC back on Lagos-Ibadan Expressway

    Julius Berger, RCC back on Lagos-Ibadan Expressway

    Construction giants- Julius Berger PLC and Reynolds Construction Company (RCC)- have returned to work on the N167 billion Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the  workers’ presence  is noticeable at the Redemption Camp and Arepo areas of the Lagos end of the road.

    NAN reports that while palliative works are ongoing at the failed spots in the Redemption Camp area, major  work is being done at Arepo.

    Julius Berger is handling Section One of the project, which stretches from Sagamu Inter-Change to Lagos; RCC is in charge of Section Two, stretching from Sagamu Inter-Change to Ojoo, Ibadan.

    The repair of the failed sections has brought relief to motorists who are clamouring for early completion of the road which is the nation’s busiest highway.

    A source  said Julius Berger was back on the road for good, adding: “It is time to move forward on the project”.

    The expected date for the completion of the project, which is being financed through Public and Private Partnership (PPP), is July 3, 2017.

    Motorists and commuters have continued to appeal to the Federal Government to speed up work to facilitate travelling.

    Ojo Agege, a commercial vehicle driver, urged the government to ensure speedy completion of the project.

    Lateef Mohammed, another commercial driver, said motorists would continue to have nightmares on the road, until the government fixes it.

    “All we are saying is that the government should help to fast track the construction of the road to ease traffic delay being experienced by travellers,” he said.

    Ms Simisola Joseph, a trader, however, expressed optimism that with the coming of Babatunde Fashola as Works and Housing Minister, the construction would soon be completed.

    Motorists and travellers are praising RCC for the progress made so far on Section Two of the road.

    Femi Ajegun, a driver, told NAN that vehicular movement was now easy with the completion of work on some critical areas at the Ibadan end of the road.

    “With the quality of job done and removal of long stretch of diversion by RCC, motorists and travellers now experience some pleasurable ride,” he said.

    Sule Maito, a passenger at Ogere area, told NAN that if RCC could continue the way it is going, the job may be completed on schedule.

    The Federal Ministry of Works, last week after a  stakeholders /presidency meeting, said the government had committed N50 billion to the project.

    The ministry promised to ensure timely completion of the road.

  • Lagos-Ibadan Expressway to last for 50 years, says minister

    Lagos-Ibadan Expressway to last for 50 years, says minister

    The Minister of Works, Mr. Mike Onolememen and Reynolds Construction Company’s (RCC’s) chief engineer, Nader Yusuf, have said the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway will last 50 years when completed.

    They spoke yesterday at the inspection of the road by the minister.

    Onolememen said the asphalt used for the building of the road was an improved material, which would give the road a 50-year lifespan despite the heavy traffic.

    He added: “We have found out that the bitumen we used on this road before was not good enough to withstand the heavy traffic. We have designed an operation and maintenance strategy, which will take off immediately after the construction of the road. It will run for 25 years.

    “The usage of the asphalt will end the damage done by heavy trucks and we will not witness the destruction done by heavy trucks on the road again, because they are not using bitumen for the rehabilitation.

    “The Federal Government, through the Federal Ministry of Works and the ministry’s transaction adviser on infrastructure, has secured project amount initiative for the actualisation of the project.

    “This is besides the commitment of the Federal Government, which amounts to about N50 billion. The Private Finance Initiative (PFI), which is a way of funding critical infrastructure projects, is common in the United States of America and it is a novel funding mechanism in Nigeria, which is what we are implementing in the ministry. This is the first road, which will benefit from the PFI funding. What this means is that this road will be completed as scheduled. It will also be a model for our other projects.”

    Onolememen assured Nigerians that the road would not be concessioned to anybody.

    He said government had secured the N25 billion commitment for this year.

    The Works minister urged the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) to be involved in the project, to ease traffic.

  • Cash crunch stalls work on Lagos-Ibadan Expressway

    Cash crunch stalls work on Lagos-Ibadan Expressway

    Govt to concession road

    Motorists will continue to face hardship on the ever-busy Lagos-Ibadan Expressway – no thanks to a cash crunch that is threatening the Federal Government’s plan to rebuild the road.

    The Federal Government is considering a fresh concession to investors to make the N167billion project a reality.

    In the proposed Public-Private Partnership (PPP), the government will collaborate with investors, the Infrastructure Bank, Julius Berger Plc and Reynolds Construction Company Limited(RCC).

    About N23million has been voted in the 2014 Budget for the hiring of consultants on the PPP scheme.

    The government has also allocated N5billion to the rehabilitation of the Lagos-Sagamu-Ibadan dual carriageway (Section 1) to make for the challenge it is facing on the reconstruction of the expressway.

    The recourse to concession is being kept under wraps by the government in what a source described as a back-door approach.

    The Federal Government, in November 2012, terminated the 25-year concession given to Dr. Wale Babalakin’s Bi-Courtney Limited for the construction and maintenance of the 105-kilometre Expressway.

    The expressway was concessioned to Bi-Courtney in 2009 at N89.53 billion for 25 years.

    Minister of Works Mike Onolememen said the agreement was revoked due to Bi-Courtney’s failure to adhere to its terms.

    In June last year, the Federal Government re-awarded the reconstruction of the expressway to Julius Berger Plc and RCC.

    Last July, President Goodluck Jonathan launched the reconstruction at N167billion with a completion timeline of 48 months.

    But barely six months after the launch, the project has run into a hitch.

    Neither the Federal Government nor the construction firms can source funds to execute the project.

    A source, who spoke with our correspondent, said: “The government has no money to implement the project.

    “There are so many competing demands for the government. And the construction firms, who has been re-awarded the project, cannot finance it without necessary legal backing granting the concession to them.

    “The firms are also unprepared to take the risk to bear the cost without partnership or understanding with the government on how to recoup their investment.

    “When the government re-awarded the contract to the two construction giants, it gave the impression that it would finance it wholesale.

    “Even if the government now concedes the project to Julius Berger Plc and RCC, it would amount to a violation of the PPP law because there are laid down procedures.

    “For instance, the project ought to be advertised for competitive bidding by the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC).

    “So, the PPP for Lagos-Ibadan Expressway would have become legally flawed from the beginning.

    “You can see that what the government should do first is what it is now doing. I think politics crept into the project and the government could not do its homework properly.”

    Section 2.1 of the Nigerian Public-Private Partnerships Manual reads: “The project is usually initiated by a Ministry, Department, and/or Agency (MDA) of the government. In select cases, the project could be initiated by the private sector as an Unsolicited Proposal under a transparent, competitive process which will also be managed by a MDA.

    “The first step for the MDA is to develop a project concept to be approved by the National Planning Commission (for projects of the Federal Government) or other relevant state authorities.

    “The project concept will usually be based on a Pre-Feasibility study or Outline Business Case, and if it is approved, will allow the project to be included in the 15-year Master Plan (or National Implementation Plan for the Federal Government) which sets out the Government’s infrastructure investment strategy covering all forms of procurement, including projects that will be financed in whole or in part from the federal budget.”

    It was learnt that the Federal Government was contemplating reaching out to the ICRC Governing Board for a “bail out”.

    The board, which is headed by former Senate President Ken Nnamani, may receive the concession proposal this month.

    Other members of the board are the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator Anyim Pius Anyim; the Coordinating Minister for the Economy and Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala; the Minister of Justice, Mr. Mohammed Bello Adoke(SAN); the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi; Yabawa Lawan Wabi; Abdullahi Musa Elayo; Comfort Saro-Wiwa; Chief A.U. Kanu; Mrs. Janet F. Adeyemi; and Mr. Aminu Diko.

    A member of the ICRC board, who spoke in confidence, said: “The government is proposing to go back to the concession alternative to enable it get investors to execute the project.

    “This is the case because of cash flow. The resources are not there due to competing needs.

    “The concession will involve a sort of PPP with the participation of Julius Berger, RCC, investors, the Infrastructure Bank and the government.

    “There is a challenge however , we may need to waive procedures to make the project a reality. Yet, many people have reservations about this back-door approach.

    “Yet, no investor will buy into a back-door method. If care is not taken, we may return to the same spot on the project.”

    Responding to a question, the source added: “The President meant well and as a Governing Board, we will assist him to achieve his goal.”

    A top source at the Federal Ministry of Works drew our attention to the provision for the wxpressway in the 2014 Budget.

    He was not willing to entertain any question on the project.

    A part of the budget reads:

    •Rehabilitation and Asphalt overlay of Benin-Shagamu Expressway (Benin-Ofosu) N500 million

    •Rehabilitation of Lagos-Shagamu-Ibadan dual carriageway section 1 N5 billion

    •Reconstruction of the outstanding section of Benin-Ofosu-Ore-Ajebandele-Shagamu Expressway phase III N750 million

    •Rehabilitation of Shagamu-Ajebandele-Ore road section 1 Ajebandele-Ofosu road in Ondo state N78,153,148

    •Lagos-Ibadan concession project management/consultancy services N23 million

  • Outrageous variation

    Outrageous variation

    • Abuja-Lokoja road cost review from N42bn to N116bn is an example of how contracts are abused

    WE doubt whether the government can meet up with its developmental obligations the way it is going regarding contract variations. In a scandalous revelation before the Senate Ad-hoc Committee on Subsidy Reinvestment and Empowerment Programme (SURE-P), it was discovered that the Abuja-Lokoja highway contract initially awarded for N42 billion in 2006, has been re-valued to N116 billion, which translates to an unbelievable 170 per cent increase.

    The variation, ostensibly at the instance of the parties handling the project, has justifiably incurred the wrath of the committee that has promptly directed them to appear before it. The affected companies are: Reynolds Construction Company (RCC) Nigeria Limited, Dantata and Sawoe Nigeria Limited, Bulletin Construction Company and Gitto Construction Company Nigeria Limited. According to Abdul Ningi, the committee chairman, the firms must come forward to explain the “scandalous review of the Abuja-Lokoja road contract sum with over 170 per cent from 2006 to date.’’

    Also, Mike Onolememen, Minister of Works, after three summonses, and Gabriel Amuchi, Managing Director of the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA), reluctantly appeared before the committee citing ‘technical deficiencies’ as responsible for the outrageous variation. We wonder what technical deficiencies could warrant such bizarre increase. The alibi that consultant’s mistake of not initially coming up with the requisite designs of the contract necessitated the variation is untenable. Why would a road contract of such magnitude not come with design? And who is that consultant? Are there sanctions for such incompetence or negligence? If yes, has that consultant been sanctioned? This kind of immoral official padding of contract costs is unacceptable.

    We acknowledge that reasonable variations in awarded contracts, especially in an unstable economy like Nigeria’s, is globally acceptable. Intervening situations such as inflationary trend, delayed payment of contract fees, high interest rates and unforeseen circumstances, among others, could compel the need for contract variation. But such variations should not be done wantonly. Such opportunity should not be deployed, as the current trend seems to suggest, to fleece the nation of its hard-earned money.

    Among several shocking revelations unearthed by the committee is that FERMA spent N1.3 billion last year alone on operational and labour cost, out of the N4 billion it got from the SURE-P for road maintenance and rehabilitation. We consider this absurd and unfortunate, especially because the Federal Ministry of Labour and Productivity had already engaged the same youths that FERMA said it engaged, under the same SURE-P arrangement.

    FERMA was also caught in curious duplicity web when it claimed to have procured, this year, some equipment that were already catered for in its 2012 budget. This, in our view, is criminal project recycling and unwarranted waste of scarce public funds.

    SURE-P is fast becoming a conduit pipe for defrauding the state. More worrisome is that over N178 billion of the programme’s money released between 2012 and 2013 for the construction of the Abuja-Abaji-Lokoja road, Kano road, Maiduguri road, Enugu-Onitsha road, the Benin-Shagamu-Ore road, the Second Niger Bridge and the Oweto Bridge, linking Benue and Nasarawa states, has not yielded the desired results.

    The nation is fast becoming a territory of financial tittle-tattle. We decry the prevailing situation of indefensible contract variations and superfluous duplication of jobs by government agencies just to rip off the country. Any nation craving for infrastructural development cannot achieve that goal in the face of such scandalous project variations by seemingly uncontrollable overnment officials.

  • Court summons RCC over land dispute

    JUSTICE Mufutau Adegbola of the Oyo State High Court yesterday granted a writ of summons to Chief Areoye Oyebola in a land tussle between the former commissioner and the Osanyindina family.

    Oyebola bought 100 acres of land in Onitupuru on the Lagos/Ibadan Expressway from the Osanyindina family in Ibadan in 2003 for N4 million. It was learnt that the family re-sold the land to the Road Construction Company (RCC) last July.

    Oyebola sued the family and the construction company. The family was represented by Baale Aba Nla Chief Lamidi Oladipo, Tiamiyu Oladipo, Gbolagun Oladipo and Chief Adeleke Makinde, the Baale Olokuta.

    Oyebola prayed the court to grant him “an order restraining the defendants and their agents from further trespassing on the land and allowing him to deal with them in whatever way if they do pending the determination of the suit.”

    Speaking with The Nation after the hearing, Oyebola’s counsel, Biodun Amole said: “Oyebola bought the 100-acre of land in 2003. The family executed a deed of conveyance in Oyebola’s favour, duly signed by its accredited representatives. Ten years later, they purportedly resold it to RCC.

    “The law says that if you want to serve someone who is not within the jurisdiction of the court, you must obtain leave of the court to serve the company. That is what we achieved today because RCC headquarters is in Abuja. Until they come to the court, we do not know if the company has any claim to the land in dispute.”

    On his losses, Oyebola said: “I planted maringer trees and quick-yielding species of plantain on the land, but they destroyed them. The company needs the rock on the land and has started blasting it. It has taken possession of the land, but I know justice will prevail.”