President Bola Tinubu on Thursday said his administration will commit more funds to infrastructure development and urged governors to collaborate with the Federal Government to align building approvals.
Tinubu said proper approval alignment between the subnational and Federal Governments will facilitate the construction of major roads and bridges across the country.
“I have directed the Minister of Works, David Umahi, and the Surveyor General of the federation to work more closely with the governors,” Tinubu said when he commissioned the Lekki Deep Sea Port Access Road at the Dangote Refinery and Petrochemical Plant in Lagos.
Special Adviser on Information and Strategy to the President, Bayo Onanuga, revealed excerpts of the engagement in a statement he signed Thursday titled ‘President Tinubu Assures of More Spending on Enduring Infrastructure.’
Tinubu said aligning state approvals with the federal government will reduce the burden of compensation and delays in actualising people-oriented projects.
“Please, my dear governors, let’s work together. Don’t give planning approvals without collaboration with the Surveyor General and the Ministry of Works. I am appealing to you to realise the same development goal.
“Let me emphasise the ban by the Federal Government of Nigeria on any dredging within a 10km radius of all our Bridges nationwide.
“I appeal to all governors, relevant agencies, and security agencies to implement this ban immediately,” Tinubu said.
The ceremony came five days after the President commissioned Phase 1 of Section One of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, also in Lagos.
Tinubu commended the Federal Ministry of Works, Messrs Hitech Construction Company Limited, Messrs Dangote Industries Limited, BUA and all contractors involved in the country’s road development. He said his administration is committed to building enduring infrastructure nationwide.
He dismissed critics of the government’s legacy projects for being ignorant about how the government awarded the legacy roads to contractors.
“It is necessary to note that the Federal Executive Council approved our Legacy Projects to be procured, awarded and constructed in sections.
“The completed 30 km segment of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway is part of the 47.7 km, six-lane Section I contract, not a wholesale 750 km contract, as some have suggested. No contractor has been awarded the entire corridor.
“Our approach has been systematic, transparent, and section-based. The Sokoto-Badagry Superhighway, envisioned 47 years ago under the Shagari administration, is another legacy project we have revived. This corridor – spanning Sokoto, Kebbi, Niger, Kwara, Oyo, Ogun, and Lagos -holds immense potential for agriculture, trade, and industrialization,” said Tinubu.
He explained that it connects over 58 dams, vast arable farmlands, and trade routes to our West African neighbours and offers great promise for windmill energy generation. Construction is well underway.
In Kebbi, he said the administration has completed over 10 km of the 258 km three-lane carriageway, adding “and today we flag off the second carriageway. This section is the longest in all our Legacy Projects.”
He noted that work has begun in Sokoto on the 120 km single-carriageway with three lanes from Illela.
“I understand that over 10km of this project is already completed. Today, we shall be flagging off the second carriageway of 120km with three lanes. Work is also at an advanced stage in this section. More sections are being designed for procurement and award along the whole length of the Sokoto-Badagry Superhighway.
“On my way here, I witnessed significant progress at Section II of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, with over 10 km of the 55 km stretch already completed.
“I am also pleased to report ongoing works in the Cross River and Akwa Ibom sections and have directed that more segments be designed and procured. The Trans-Sahara Trade Route, another visionary project, is advancing steadily. It will connect Calabar to Abuja via Ebonyi, Benue, Kogi, and Nasarawa,” he said.
Tinubu said he had directed accelerated design on the 4th Legacy Project of the Akwanga-Jos-Bauchi and Gombe corridor to enable procurement to start.
“Let me assure you that with God on our side, we shall complete these projects and deploy them for the economic benefit of our nation,” he emphasised.
Other projects commissioned by the President include Yakasai to Zalli Road, Kano State, Shendam Bridge, Plateau State (Triacta), Kwanar-Hadejia Section II (82km), Kano/Jigawa State, Jimeta Bridge, Adamawa State (Triacta), Ilobu-Erinle Road, Kwara/Osun States and Cham-Numan Bridge, Adamawa State. (Punch)
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