The Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Raji Fashola, has revealed that the sit-at-home order by the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) played a major role in the apparent delay in the completion of the Second Niger Bridge project.
This was made known by Fashola while featuring on a Channels Television program, Sunrise Daily, on Wednesday, 21 December 2022.
The minister had earlier assured that the bridge would be completed before the end of 2022 and would be open for use during the yuletide season.
Contractors could not work on Mondays
- Fashola on the challenges facing the bridge said, “These dates keep shifting and people must remember that on the eastern side, our contractors have not been able to work on Mondays for almost two years and that has affected the completion date.
- ‘’While construction workers work on Saturdays, a 52-day loss cannot easily be made up for in construction work.’’
The minister listed other challenges that contributed to the lost days to include the relocation of transmission lines connecting the East to the West across the Niger River, as well as the snag that affected the early completion of the bridge within the time earlier stipulated.
The bridge is expected to be completed by May 2023
Speaking on finishing the last 4km stretch of the road in 4 months, Mr. Fashola said the construction is taking place in marshland and as such, there is a great need for dredging and sand filling, a process which he says cannot be rushed.
He emphasized that the reason the ministry and its contractors have made great progress on the road so far is because they have employed the use of Prefabricated Vertical Drains which accelerate settlement and drainage and as such, workers can start building quicker than would ordinarily have been expected.
Fashola, however, assured Nigerians that the bridge will be completed before the tenure of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration ends in May 2023, adding that inevitably the bridge will be tolled to ensure that it is maintained to serve Nigerians for many years.
For catch up
- The Second Niger Bridge is a Federal Government project that has cost about N206 billion.
- The 1.6 km long bridge is furnished with other ancillary infrastructure, including a 10.3km highway, the Owerri interchange, and a toll station all at Obosi town.
- The bridge was conceived under the administration of Olusegun Obasanjo but was embarked upon by President Muhammadu Buhari.
- The bridge is being constructed across Nigeria’s Niger River and it will span from Asaba to Onitsha.
- The Federal Government about a week ago opened the Second Niger Bridge for use for a period of one month during the Yuletide. The bridge is expected to be closed on January 15, 2023, for the completion of the project.
