The Federal Executive Council has approved N1.39 billion augmentation for the completion of Phase II of a bridge spanning 2.6 kilometers in Delta State.
Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, disclosed this at the end of Wednesday’s meeting of the council presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari.
He said the first contract was first awarded in 2006 but was abandoned due to lack of funds but the Buhari administration is determined to complete it.
Mohammed, who briefed on behalf of his Works and Housing counterpart, said: “The first memo he presented today was a memo seeking approval for revised estimated total cost of a contract for the completion of Phase II of Uto Bridge, 2.6 kilometer stretch in Ikenke, Delta State.
“This is an old project which we are committed to completing, I think the project was awarded in year 2006, but we are committed to completing it so today the FEC approved the sum of N1.398 billion to revise the contract from the N4.435 billion to N5.835 billion, inclusive of 7.5% VAT, to ensure that we’re able to complete this project before we leave.”
Completed Projects
He also gave an update on projects completed by the current administration, in line with its promise to citizens.
“Also the Minister of Works got approval for the completion of a byepass. I think along the Lagos-Ibadan expressway, but the good thing about this project is that we can very confidently and proudly announce that the Kano-Zaria 137 kilometer and the Zaria-Kaduna, 73 kilometers, will be handed over to us on May 15. Ditto the Second Niger Bridge will be handed over to us on May 15, the Lagos-Ibadan 116 kilometers, with toll gates, will be handed over to us on April 30
“The Loko-Oweto Bridge is also completed, so also is the Ikom Bridge completed. Our Federal Secretariats in Nasarawa, Awka, Bayelsa and Zamfara State are also completed and the Zuba housing project, 700 apartments, they’re also already for commissioning and use,” he added.
Education
Similarly, the Minister of State for Education, Goodluck Opiah disclosed that the council gave approval for the sum of N32.4 billion as the revised total cost for the completion of the National Library, Abuja.
He said: “Today, at the Federal Executive Council meeting the Federal Ministry of Education presented a memo for approval for the revised estimated total cost of contract for the completion of the construction of National Library of Nigeria headquarters building complex in Abuja, the revised estimated cost is N32.4bn.
“This contract was originally awarded in 2006 and has undergone further revisions until 2017 when the company presented a request for variation amounting to N78bn which was considered quite unacceptable by the Federal Ministry of Education. And therefore, an ad hoc committee of technical stakeholders was set up to review the variation.
“The adhoc committee was composed of the Ministry of Education, the National Library of Nigeria and the Federal Capital Development Authority who is the supervisory agency, the consultant to the project and the consultant itself. And after exhaustive review, the cost was brought down to N49.6bn which was acceptable to the contractor.
“Before then, previous certificates amounting to about N11.9bn had already been earned. The scope of work for the project includes the construction of a concrete structure consisting of 11 floors, two basement floors and eight upper floors for housing bookstore, locker rooms, bindery, printing press, restaurants, clinic, crèches changing rooms exhibition hall, auditorium, cataloguing, general reference areas, legal deposits, office for the administration book stacks, reading areas, electronic data processing center, library research and training center public convenience and underground car pack furnishing as well as perimeter fencing, gates and gatehouses, internal roads, electrical and mechanical services and other external works. The memo was duly considered and approved by the council.”
PIAK
