Why Numerous Road Projects Were Abandoned — FG Tells Senate

The Federal Government on Tuesday told the Senate why there are
numerous abandoned road projects across the country, saying that
the processes in which appropriation is made both at the executive
as well as the legislative arms of governments form part of the
reasons.

Disclosing this in Abuja when she appeared before the Senator
Clifford Ordia, Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Edo Central led
Senate Committee on Local and Foreign Debts, Minister of Finance,
Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed said that abandonment of
projects across the country will be averted if it was possible for
the Federal Government to take just take one or two projects at a
time and complete it before going to the next one.

The Minister said, “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.”

Zainab Ahmed who told the Senate Committee that work on the
legacy projects, Lagos-Ibadan highway, 2nd Niger Bridge, East-West
road, and Abuja-Kaduna-Kano road were ongoing without stop because
funds were available and they are few, said: “The NSIA was assigned
four major road projects to do. These projects are Lagos-Ibadan
highway, 2nd Niger Bridge, East-West road, and Abuja-Kaduna-Kano
road.

“After the President gave approval, the appropriation for that
year, 2019 was remitted to the NSIA, and then added its own
fund.

“The projects are going on course because there is funding on
the ground and because they are few, they are concentrating on them
and work is ongoing. I wish we get to a point when we narrow down
project implementation to few a projects at a time.”

Speaking on the delay in releasing Sukuk funds to contractors
for executed projects, the minister said, “though the fund is
protected, there are procedures put in place to verify claims that
will be paid.

”There is an audit process, the first batch has been released,
the second batch is being released as we speak.

“There are some checks that we have to put in place to make sure
that the claim that is being made is actually valid.

There are parties that have been engaged to do a second level of
verification in addition to the claims the ministry of works sends
as invoices due for payment.

“The batch which is about N58 billion has been released. There
is another N35 billion that is under processing.

The Federal Government on Tuesday told the Senate why there are
numerous abandoned road projects across the country, saying that
the processes in which appropriation is made both at the executive
as well as the legislative arms of governments form part of the
reasons.

Disclosing this in Abuja when she appeared before the Senator
Clifford Ordia, Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Edo Central led
Senate Committee on Local and Foreign Debts, Minister of Finance,
Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed said that abandonment of
projects across the country will be averted if it was possible for
the Federal Government to take just take one or two projects at a
time and complete it before going to the next one.

The Minister said, “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.”

Zainab Ahmed who told the Senate Committee that work on the
legacy projects, Lagos-Ibadan highway, 2nd Niger Bridge, East-West
road, and Abuja-Kaduna-Kano road were ongoing without stop because
funds were available and they are few, said: “The NSIA was assigned
four major road projects to do. These projects are Lagos-Ibadan
highway, 2nd Niger Bridge, East-West road, and Abuja-Kaduna-Kano
road.

“After the President gave approval, the appropriation for that
year, 2019 was remitted to the NSIA, and then added its own
fund.

“The projects are going on course because there is funding on
the ground and because they are few, they are concentrating on them
and work is ongoing. I wish we get to a point when we narrow down
project implementation to few a projects at a time.”

Speaking on the delay in releasing Sukuk funds to contractors
for executed projects, the minister said, “though the fund is
protected, there are procedures put in place to verify claims that
will be paid.

”There is an audit process, the first batch has been released,
the second batch is being released as we speak.

“There are some checks that we have to put in place to make sure
that the claim that is being made is actually valid.

There are parties that have been engaged to do a second level of
verification in addition to the claims the ministry of works sends
as invoices due for payment.

“The batch which is about N58 billion has been released. There
is another N35 billion that is under processing.