The Nigerian Government has declared a state of emergency on the Suleja–Minna Road in Niger State, North-Central Nigeria.
The Minister of Works, Mr David Umahi, who made this known during an inspection of the project, revealed that the project had been abandoned for 18 months, and the sections reportedly completed by the contractor, Salini Nigeria Limited, were already in a deteriorated condition.
He announced the immediate termination of the contract with Salini Nigeria Limited and declared the project an emergency assignment to be executed under emergency procurement procedures and taken over by CCECC and CGC companies. “The project has been irrevocably terminated, and Nigerians will see why we terminated it. If they (Salini) do not do what we have directed them to do—what they owe us under our supervision—we are all going to the EFCC to take it over,” Umahi said.
“We are documenting the current condition of the road for public accountability. Once work is completed, people tend to forget how bad it was. The Information Department must keep a visual record to justify our emergency action,” he added.
Mr Umahi described the project as a top priority, stating that the government would integrate safety and security infrastructure into the road design. This includes solar-powered lighting, CCTV surveillance, and a rapid-response mechanism involving security agencies.
The Suleja–Minna Road project spans 40 km from Diko Junction to Bonu Village and includes two twin flyovers and three river bridges.
The Minister also inspected the ongoing reconstruction of the Abuja–Kaduna–Minna dual carriageway. Commenting on its progress, he noted that the quality of work matched that of other flagship projects such as the Lagos–Calabar Coastal Highway and the Sokoto–Badagry Road.
The Minister expressed appreciation to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for his unwavering support, especially after the termination of the previous contract with Julius Berger over cost discrepancies. “Without Mr President’s support, it would have been difficult to redeem the project’s integrity. But with the quality of work being delivered by Infoquest, today both the Ministry’s and my integrity are restored,” he said.
Accompanying the Minister on the inspection tour were the Minister of State for Works, Mr Bello Goronyo; the Deputy Chief Whip of the 10th Senate, Senator Onyekachi Nwaebonyi; and a member of the Senate Committee on Works.