The construction work on the Second Niger Bridge may be put on hold until the integrity of the bridge is sorted out.
Reasons ranging from the actual cost of the bridge, non- issuance of the Certificate of Compliance, non-compensation of the host community and non- adherence to due process in the award of the contract were also responsible for the stoppage.
The Director-General of Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission, ICRC, Aminu Diko disclosed this after a private meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
Already, there is a raging controversy over the actual cost spent on the consultancy for the bridge, with the allegation by Edo State governor, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, that N140 billion was spent on the consultancy for the Second Niger Bridge.
The allegation which the Managing Director of the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority, NSIA, Uche Orji, has expressed shock over, stating that only $2.21 million (about N340 million, using the then exchange rate of N154/$1) was spent on the consultancy for that project.
Noting the importance of the road that linked the South East and South West, Diko, however, asked the people to be patient with the government.
“The Second Niger Bridge is one of the projects that we discussed with the President. We did say it is in the commission for regulatory oversight. We have been discussing the transaction with the Ministry of Works.
“But before it can be finalized, the commissioner has to give a Certificate of Compliance, but we have not even done that because we have seen a lot of issues that we are uncomfortable with. We are talking with the Ministry of Works for them to correct them.
“The communities around that area are clamouring that their lands have been taken and that they have not been compensated adequately. As a matter of fact, we …Read More
Source:: New Mail
