By Ovie Okpare
Minister of Works, Senator David Umahi, has ordered the arrest of any concessionaire or contractor found removing asphalt from federal roads, just as he berated the concessionaire handling the Benin-Agbor Road, which is now in a deplorable state.
The Minister also declared that the Federal Government would no longer tolerate the alleged incompetence and destruction of public infrastructure witnessed on the troubled Benin-Agbor-Asaba Road.
Umahi, who expressed outrage during an inspection of the road in Edo State, also apologised to commuters and residents of Edo and Delta states over the hardship caused by the deplorable condition of the major highway.
Speaking while inspecting the Benin-Agbor and Benin-Sapele Highways on Tuesday, when he paid an on-the-spot assessment visit to the Benin section of the road, he noted that the current suffering faced by commuters was highly regrettable.
Umahi, a former governor of Ebonyi State, accused the concessionaire handling the road of lacking the technical competence, personnel and method statement required to execute the project, insisting that the road was in better condition before it was handed over.
The minister said the Ministry of Works had repeatedly warned against the removal of asphalt but the concessionaire allegedly ignored the directives.
“I am very, very disappointed with this concessionaire. I offer apologies. I take full responsibility for the misdeed and for the destruction of public asset,” Umahi said.
He warned that removing asphalt from federal roads without approval was a violation of government policy and directed ministry controllers to arrest contractors or concessionaires who engage in the practice.
“This road was not like this before we handed it over to you. It was not like this!”, the minister fumed during the inspection.
Umahi said the contractor’s inability to properly manage the project had subjected road users to untold hardship, describing the situation as unacceptable and inexcusable.
He further criticised the concessionaire’s technical capacity, saying the company appeared to be learning road construction on a major federal highway.
“You have no method statement, you have no technical competence, you have no technical staff! And now you have brought untold hardship!” the minister declared.
Umahi said the Federal Government would put the welfare of road users ahead of contractual complications, stressing that the principle of overriding public interest remained available to government.
He said President Bola Tinubu was concerned about the suffering of commuters and had directed the Ministry of Works to take immediate steps to restore the road.
The minister disclosed that the government would engage competent contractors to undertake immediate restoration while discussions continued with the concessionaire.
According to him, “You must not provoke the people. This is provocation that is at its highest level, where people cannot pass through the road because of greed, because of lack of competence, because of manipulation.”
Umahi said the concessionaire, contractors, the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission and the independent engineer would be brought together with the Edo State Government to agree on the way forward.
Speaking further, Umahi announced that President Tinubu had directed the redesign of the Lokoja-Benin-Effurun road corridor, spanning about 401 kilometres, for reconstruction with concrete pavement.
He said the Federal Government would no longer rely on what he described as endless and inadequate palliative repairs on the strategic highway.
“We need to reconstruct this road, not this palliative pandemonium that is going on,” Umahi said, stressing that the road carries too much traffic to be subjected to temporary repairs.
Meanwhile, Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission, Dr. Samuel Ogbuku, said the commission had received complaints over the suffering of motorists along the Benin-Sapele corridor and had commenced steps to intervene.
Ogbuku disclosed that the NDDC team had scoped 15.4 kilometres of the worst section between Benin, Ologbo Junction and Sapele and described parts of the stretch as bad and unmotorable.
He said the NDDC and Ministry of Works had agreed to work together on the intervention to ensure that any remedial work conforms with the original design of the road and is capable of standing the test of time.
According to him, the commission’s intervention became necessary after the funding arrangement for the project through the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited was disrupted.
“It is government responsibility, and we are not running away from those responsibilities. That is why we are here to take up that responsibility.”
Also speaking, Edo State Governor, Monday Okpebholo, commended President Tinubu for responding swiftly to the crisis, saying the intervention came only days after residents raised concerns over the road.
Okpebholo said the strategic position of Edo made the condition of the highway a national concern, describing the state as a gateway connecting the South-South, South-East, South-West and the North.
He also praised the President for previously addressing the Ekpoma-Benin road, saying the completed section had been transformed.
