FEC approves billions for Akwanga-Keffi-Makurdi highway project, others 

The Federal Executive Council, FEC, on Wednesday, February 17, 2021, granted approvals for projects worth N103.671 billion for various contract proposals presented by the ministries of Works and Housing, Federal Capital Territory, FCT, and Water Resources.

The week’s virtual FEC meeting, which was presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari in the Council Chambers of the State House, also gave a minute silence in honour of former Lagos State governor Alhaji Lateef Jakande, who was also a Cabinet minister between 1993 and 1995.

Giving details of the proceedings of the meeting to State House Correspondents at its end, Ministers of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola; FCT, Mallam Mohammed Bello; and Water Resources Engr Suleiman Adamu, gave details of the approvals and the figures attached to them.

Addressing journalists, Minister of Works and Housing, Fasola disclosed that the four memoranda his ministry presented to FEC were approved, starting with the Benin-Ore-Ajebamdele Road, particular the section from Ajebamdele to Shagamu.

“The redesigning of the shoulders and pavement provision necessitated a revised estimated total cost of N22.879 billion to take the contract from original sum of N71.6 billion to N92.5 billion. The stretch involved is 99 kilometers from kilometer 162 to 261. Council approved that review of total estimated cost in Favour of Messers RCC construction firm currently working there.

“Council also approved the contract for the Akwanga-Keffi-Makurdi highway, an existing contract executed under the China-EXIM loan by China Habour Engineering Construction Company, CHECK.

This is a sub-contract within the contract, which is the construction of a nine-way underground cable and telecommunication facility dock over the length of 255 kilometers for the sum of N46.25 billion.

“Council approved this in Favour of a company called QSA Limited. The company will first relocate some of the existing services, cables, pipes, and all of that on that corridor and then construct a nine-way dock underground for future facility. So this will help in digital communication, pipe, gas, and everybody who wants to lay service cables and allied installations in the future without necessarily damaging the existing road.

“The third memo approved is the design and equipping of an automation process for the issuance of certificate of occupancy in respect of federal government lands.

“Currently, the minister for works and housing has delegated authority for signing certificate of occupancy in a manual form. But we are moving to automation based on this approval, that all of these processes can be initiated online, processed online, approved, and printed in a digital form and this will provide also business continuity and retrieval in case of any obstruction arising from natural and other unforeseen courses. The contract for all of this was N976,037,330 in Favour of IQ Systems with completion period of 10 months.

“The fourth memo was for the construction of 4×20 meters span bridge at kilometer 18 along Langtang-Wase Road in Plateau State for N2.867 billion to Metropolitan Construction Nigeria Limited.

“Recall last year that he has bridge which was an old bridge, collapsed as a result of heavy flooding in the Langtang-Wase area cutting off people. We had to provide some remedial crossing for the communities. So council has approved that we reconstruct the bridge this time using reinforced concrete at N2.867 billion,” he said.

Mallam Bello, the minister of the FCT, disclosed that his ministry presented five memoranda, all of which were approved, including the review of the N19.5 billion Southern Parkway project.

Listing out the five contracts, the Minister said those requested and granted were “approval for the award of contract for the provision of access road to open up sections of Institute and Research District, Abuja. Housing National Defense College, Legislative Institute at the cost of N3,462,440,823.88 and eight months completion period.

“Approval for the award of contract for the construction of access road and car park for Abuja Light rail stations, Kagini Station. The cost is N1,830,392,696.00, to be completed in 12 months.

“Approval for the upwards review of the contract sum for the construction of Southern Parkway from Christian Centre (S8/S9) to Ring-road. Contract augmentation from N16,234,553,335 to N35.7B. The added cost is N19,523,209,974.57, to be delivered in 24 months.

“Approval for the award of contract for the rehabilitation of Bwari Law School Road, through Kuchiko from Federal Capital Territory boundary to Ijah (Bwari-Ijah Road) in the Federal Capital Territory. Contract sum is N1,466,334,591.34 and to be delivered in 18 months.

“Approval for the award of contract for the construction of Kasce feeder road in Gwagwalada by Hospital Junction to Kasce Resettlement with 1no. Hydraulic structure in Gwagwalada Area Council of the FCT. The contract sum is N3,522,438,591.09, to be completed in 16 months,” he said.

The Minister of Water Resources, Engr. Adamu, also said his ministry presented two contracts, which were also approved.

“The first one is the Fika-Gadaka Water Project in Yobe State. This project which started in 2003 was abandoned in 2007 at 30 percent completion. We sought council approval to revive the project and therefore, we had to revise the cost of the project and also change the scope of work to include things like solar power instead of the diesel generator provided for in 2003 when diesel was quite cheap.

“We have taken a policy in the ministry that going forward, we will be using solar system to power water schemes and accordingly, this was done in the case of this project plus an extension of the pipeline to cover more areas.

“Because between 2003 and now, obviously the two towns would have expanded. So this revised estimated total cost is in the sum of N555.15 million in favour of existing contractors Messrs Atlantic Full Drilling Services Company Limited.

“Also the second memo is the revision of the consultancy contract for the supervision of Gere Earth Dam In Katsina. This also is an inherited ongoing project. Council in 2018 approved the revised estimated total cost for the project towards its completion and so it also makes since that the consultants supervising the projects their services should also be extended.

“Council approved the extension of consultancy services of Messers Emplan Group by another 36 months also with augmentation of N310 million in terms of consultancy fees,” he said.