FASHOLA TO APPEAR BEFORE SENATE OVER ABANDONED ROAD PROJECT

The senate Committee on works has been mandated to summon Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola over the abandonment of Bodo/Bonny Road which links the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas, NLNG in Bonny, Rivers State.

The Minister is to appear before the committee to explain the circumstances surrounding the Federal Government’s inability to partner the NLNG management for the urgent completion of the road project.

The Senate also asked its Committee on Works to carry out an independent comprehensive evaluation of the 35km Bodo/Bonny Road project which was awarded for N20 billion in 2002 during the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo. and report back within four weeks

The development was a result of the motion sponsored  by Senator George Sekibo (PDP Rivers East) and co-sponsored by Senators Osinakachukwu Ideozu (PDP Rivers West) and Magnus Abe (APC Rivers South East) respectively.

Senator Sekibo while Presenting the motion, said the road project in Gokana Local Government Area of Rivers State which hosts the NLNG in Bonny, was awarded by the administration of former President Obasanjo for a cost of N20billion in 2002, re-awarded by the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan in 2014 after years of abandonment at contract revalidation value of N120 billion out of which N20 billion was appropriated for it in the 2015 budget which was, however, not cash backed.

 

According to Senator Sekibo the initial cost of the project which stood at N20 billion in 2002 was reviewed to N120 billion in 2014 by former President Jonathan’s administration, adding that no money was expended from N20 billion appropriated for the project in 2015.

Sekibo during plenary session said “To worsen matters, the all-important road project was not captured in the 2016 budget, thus making the lack of understanding of the importance of the road for national economic development obvious.”

He lamented that though the road project was captured in the 2017 budget, only a meagre vote of N9 billion was earmarked for it which according to him, will lead to continued abandonment of the project.

 

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