The Federal Executive Council (FEC) has approved a contract of N4 billion for the completion of a major road connecting Kwara and Osun States.
Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, disclosed this to journalists at the end of the FEC meeting presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari in Abuja on Wednesday.
Fashola explained that contract for construction of a part of the road had earlier been awarded by the previous administration; and that it stretches through Ajase/Epo/Offa/Erinle Road in Kwara State, ending in Osun.
The latest contract approval “was for the 18 km section that completes the entire length of 26km of the road. All that was awarded in the previous administration was just 8 km of 26km.
“So, what we have done now is to award the 18km so that the full stretch of 26km is now under contract for the purpose of completion.
“That comes to a sum of N4.027billion for the 18km stretch; the previous contract is still going on; so, this is an addendum to that contract”, Fashola stated.
He added that another contract sum for construction of Osogbo-Ilesa Road, earlier awarded in 2012 but was stalled due to non-funding, was reviewed upwards by about N800million.
“What we awarded today was a variation of N825million. This is to expand the original contract by three kilometers link up to Osogbo town – the built up section because it is supposed to by-pass the town.
“This the 3.4km that the governor requested when I went on the nation-wide road tour that we should help them connect it to Osogbo town.
“So, going through procurement and all of that we finally got the approval today for N825million to include that part,’’ he said.
Fielding questions on state of other roads nationwide, Fashola said that trucks that carried 60,000 to 90, 000 tons of roads had contributed to damaging the roads but that efforts were being made to ensure that there was enforcement from the loading points- the ports and depots.
He pointed out that this was “so that weights and measures were used from point of origin to ensure that no vehicles exceeds 45,000 tons which is the approved axle load nationwide.
“As long as we continue to exceed and abuse with excess axle load there is no design that you will do that will last.
“Of course, we also have a problem; most of the heavy cargo that we haul by road, no nation does it. They use rail.
“That is why I remain continuously optimistic and excited at what transportation is doing and what government plans to do with rail because that will be part of the final contribution to long lasting roads.”
At same briefing, the Minister of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Sabo Nanono, said that a contract of N244 million was approved by FEC for the purchase of raw materials for production of vaccine for use against animal diseases, poultry, dogs among others.
