Nigerian Minister of Works, Senator David Umahi has knocked out the claim that cement price would go high to N9,000 if Federal government starts doing concrete roads, saying it’s false.
Umahi who has insisted on use of concrete rather than asphalt, made this known at the Press Briefing on Tuesday in Abuja while meeting with contractors handling federal roads.
The Minister lamented that roads that are currently constructed in Nigeria would not last for seven years after completion, adding that those claims were parts of a big campaign of blackmail against him by the cabals in the construction industry.
Umahi who expressed dissatisfaction at how contractors cheat Nigerians in use of materials to construct roads, said contractors have been in the habit of increasing cost of their projects to swindle the country through contract variation and use of asphalt materials, which are subject to the international price of crude oil.
The former Governor of Ebonyi State noted that from the tour it was discovered major roads are riddled with potholes which he said have deteriorated into “boreholes.”
He emphasised the importance of thorough documentation and clearance procedures, making it clear that contracts would not be signed without the necessary design plans and original road blueprints.
According to him, “There is no project being constructed right now in Nigeria that is going to last for seven years. The question is are we going to maintaining, reconstructing our roads every 10 years? That is what we have been doing.
“I travelled from Abuja to Benin City through Lokoja, all the stretches of the road are on contract, ongoing, this is through the policy of the last administration but how much of the roads are motorable? I travelled through the roads myself and I shed tears for the kind of pains our people are going.
“I spent 14 hours on the road having started my journey at 10 am and got to Benin City at 2 pm the next day and I was very happy I experienced the pains. President Tinubu said I must travel through all the projects so that I could brief him on my experience and tell him the truth.
“Unless Mr. President does something about our procurement, his lofty intention to help this country may not be achieved.
“Documents will be sent to the Bureau of Public Procurement for a no-objection certificate and it will stay for six months. How will the contractors do the additional job you directed them to do without backup authorisation,” he said.
While criticising workers in the Ministry for not supervising road projects, the minister also castigated the entire construction industry in Nigeria, stating that poor condition of the roads is partly due to a lack of professionalism.
He outdated construction methods and further directed all contractors to redesign their projects to concrete technology rather than asphalt and vowed not to pay any contractor who does not adhere to the directive.