UMAHI CRACKS DOWN ON CONTRACTORS, WARNS AGAINST DELAYS ON FEDERAL ROAD PROJECTS

"Poor performance and project delays must not be used to tarnish the achievements of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu's administration." Umahi warns.

..... As the Ministry reaffirmed its commitment to stricter supervision, accountability and the timely delivery of quality road and bridge infrastructure nationwide.

Nigeria's Minister of Works, Senator David Umahi, has issued a stern warning to contractors handling Federal Government road projects, declaring that poor performance and project delays must not be used to tarnish the achievements of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu's administration.

Speaking during an inspection of ongoing road and bridge projects in Kogi and Edo states, Umahi expressed disappointment over the pace of work on sections of the Abuja-Lokoja Dual Carriageway and the Obajana Junction-Benin Road dualisation project, describing the situation as unacceptable.

"I am very sad with what I saw on the ground. What was reported to us is not reflected in the actual work being done," the minister said.

Umahi revealed that one section of the Abuja-Lokoja road project had been scaled down from 49.28 kilometres to 28 kilometres due to funding limitations, allowing available resources to be concentrated on the most critical areas.

The minister reiterated the government's directive that no section of a federal highway should remain closed for more than 14 days during construction and issued an ultimatum to the affected contractor to complete the required works within the stipulated period or face contract termination.

He also handed GELD Construction Company a 72-hour deadline to utilise funds already released and demonstrate visible progress on its section of the project.

In contrast, Umahi praised JRB Construction Company for what he described as exemplary performance, professionalism and commitment to timely delivery.

"If everybody does his job accordingly, there will be no reason to shift the blame to Mr President," he said.

The minister noted that the Tinubu administration inherited a severely deteriorated federal road network but has continued to invest heavily in rebuilding and modernising critical infrastructure across the country.

As part of the tour, Umahi inspected the reconstruction and expansion works on Section III of the Abuja-Lokoja Dual Carriageway, projects along the Koton Karfe-Abuja corridor, key bridges on the route, and the Lokoja-Benin Road dualisation covering the Obajana Junction-Okene and Okene-Auchi sections.

He also assessed progress on flyover and interchange works being executed by CCG Contractors, with the flyovers nearing 80 per cent completion and the interchange at about 30 per cent.

Chairman of the Senate Committee on Works, Senator Allwell Onyesoh, backed the minister's tough stance, saying political leaders should no longer be blamed for contractors' failures. He urged the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) and the Ministry of Finance to ensure prompt release of funds for ongoing projects.

Similarly, Chairman of the House Committee on Works, Hon. Akin Alabi, called for greater collaboration among stakeholders, assuring contractors that the Federal Government remains committed to meeting all legitimate payment obligations.

Responding, GELD Construction Company's Managing Director, Fadi Azimi, pledged to intensify work and improve project delivery in line with the ministry's expectations.

The Ministry of Works reaffirmed its commitment to stricter supervision, accountability and the timely delivery of quality road and bridge infrastructure nationwide.

This was contained in a statement issued and signed by Mohammed A. Ahmed, Director, Press and Public Relations Department of the Federal Ministry of Works and a copy made available to Naij News Alert in Abuja.