Abandoned Projects In Nigeria Are Avoidable – FG

Posted by: Folamidavid in News, Politics Nov 3, 2020

Zainab Ahmed

The Federal Government has come out to reveal the reason why there are various abandoned road projects across the country.

FG recently revealed that the processes in which appropriation is made both at the executive and legislative arms of governments are part of the reasons.

According to Zainab Ahmed, abandoning road projects across Nigeria would be avoided if it was possible for the Federal Government to take only one or two projects at a time and complete it before going to the next one.

She added that she wishes we can reach a point where we sit down as a government and agree on a few projects, finish them in 2020, and then in 2021, we select the next.

Her words, “The current Sukuk fund is N162 billion is for 45 roads cutting across the six geopolitical zones.

“I am one person that feels that we should just do this and take one major road in one geopolitical zone and finish.

”We were not able to do that because of the processes in which appropriation is made both at the executive as well as the legislative arms of government.

“But truly, of we were able to just take one or two projects at a time and complete it before going to the next one, it will be better.

“So what the contractor does is the bit that has been cut out for him to do in that particular area. Once the fund is released and it is finished, we stop again.

”That is the consequence of these numerous projects that we put in the budget. It is not related to Sukuk-funded projects alone, it cuts across all the projects.

“You will see a road that costs, may be, N5 billion, and you will see a provision for N100m, N200m or 300m. Of course the project will never finish.”

”After two years, the contractor comes back and asks for variation, and the amount keeps growing.

“I wish that we get to a point when we sit down as government and agree that let us select a few projects, finish them in 2020, and then in 2021, we select the next. So that on a geopolitical basis, those selections are done as a collective process.”