Niger State Governor Mohammed Umar Bago has called on the Federal Government to revoke the contract for the Suleja-Minna road project due to alleged inefficiency by the current contractor, Salini Nigeria Limited.
Speaking at a Town Hall Meeting in Minna, Bago expressed concerns over the company's capacity to complete the 125KM segment of the ambitious 1,068KM Sokoto-Badagry Superhighway.
The governor emphasized the need for a more competent contractor to ensure timely and quality delivery of the project, which is crucial for boosting economic activities in the region.
The Governor explained that his decision to call for a revocation stems from concerns about Salini’s capacity to execute the road project effectively having failed to deliver on it for over 14 years.
” I will look at this in the face and say, Salini has failed, they don’t have the capacity. We are calling on the Minister to revoke the contract given to the company. Just like the way the Abuja-Kano road was revoked from Julius Berger recently,” he insisted.
He also called on the federal government to refund funds invested by the Niger State Government in rehabilitating federal roads in the state.
” We have put our personal resources into the federal government roads project in Niger State and we are asking for a refund. We did it because we have the same aspirations and dreams with the federal government, ” the Governor stated
Earlier, the Minister of Works, Senator Engr. Nweze David Umahi, decried the poor state of federal roads in Niger State, saying “Many of the federal projects, dating back to 2010 have remained abandoned and incomplete by successive administrations”