FG declares emergency on major highway

The Federal Government has announced an emergency intervention on the long-delayed Suleja-Minna highway project, following growing public concern over the road’s deteriorating state.

Minister of Works, David Umahi, disclosed the development during a visit to inspect the road on Saturday.

He revealed that the project had originally been awarded to Salini Nigeria Limited but noted that construction efforts were either substandard or completely stalled.

Umahi said numerous attempts over the past 18 months to get the company to fix the road had failed. He also stated that Niger State Governor Mohammed Bago raised the issue directly with President Bola Tinubu, prompting the President to instruct the Ministry of Works to act urgently.

Describing the highway’s condition, Umahi stated: “in a very terrible situation delaying travel time by seven hours instead of an hour and half hours and vehicles are falling and killing people.”

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He added, “I have declared these sections one and two, emergency projects. The president directed that urgent action should be taken and that is why we are here.”

According to Umahi, the Ministry will make public the contract details and the scope of work to explain why the government opted for emergency procedures.

“We will document the nature of the road and the contract for Nigerians to know why we declare it an emergency project and to be procured as such. When we go through due process and award the job, if the contractor waits for one day for mobilisation, I will terminate it because it’s an emergency one.”

He continued: “If you cannot trust us to start work immediately and then we will now process your mobilisation, then you don’t want to be a partner in the new Nigeria that President Tinubu is developing.”

Umahi clarified that the road project was inherited from the previous administration and laid the blame for its failure on the contractors involved. He stressed that despite receiving funds and executing some works, the output was poor and did not meet standards.

He criticised ongoing lobbying efforts to retain Salini on the project, stating: “That is wickedness, because our people will not continue to suffer like this. Contractors are engaged and paid, yet we don’t have value for money.”

“Who will people call? They call the president. They call the minister. So, we have to put that to a stop. Whoever is at fault, we place the blame on that person, and we take action.”

“As at today, Salini is still owing us and I have directed my ministry to scoop out the section of the road equal to what they are owing us, so that they can do it,” he added.

The minister confirmed the cancellation of Salini’s contract, citing the poor quality of work as justification. He also warned of legal consequences if the company fails to comply.

“There is no going back. This fight is a fight for Nigerians and we have no regrets doing this.”

Umahi said two contractors are now handling the road reconstruction, with one portion being managed under Governor Bago’s urban renewal initiative by CCCC International Engineering Nigeria Ltd.

“The governor has asked us to allow the CCCC that has started part of the project, to continue. The road is about 103 kilometers, dualised (about 206kms in total). The governor has done about 60 kilometers of the road. So we have about 146 kilometers left,” he said.

The ministry has given CCCC ten days to mobilize and commence work on the most urgent seven-kilometre section.
“This is emergency procurement, work begins first, then pricing is verified by the Bureau of Public Procurement,” Umahi explained.