news
TRENDING STATEMENT OF A MAN PURPORTING TO BE ADDRESSING THE HONOURABLE MINISTER OF WORKS MISGUIDED, SELF SERVING AND VICIOUS PROPAGANDA TYPICAL OF A PROXY SPEAKING FOR NONCONFORMING CONTRACTORS.
The attention of the Honourable Minister of Works, *His Excellency, Sen. Engr. Nweze David Umahi, CON* has been drawn to a trending statement of a man purporting to be addressing the Honourable Minister of Works over the state of roads in Nigeria and which was credited to the Chairman, House Committee on FERMA, Hon. Engr. Aderemi Abasi Oseni. The Honourable Minister views this unprovoked attack as an inconceivable embarrassment demeaning to his person and the Federal Ministry of Works as neither he nor his Permanent Secretary was in such a meeting where the said Chairman of House Committee on FERMA was said to be addressing the Honourable Minister of Works.
2. In a news conference dated 28th October 2024, the Honourable Minister stated that it was no doubt akin to darkening counsel without knowledge for the Honourable Chairman, House Committee on FERMA to vilify him over the bad state of Federal roads inherited from previous administrations numbering over 2,604 without deferring to the records of various interventions made by the Renewed Hope administration which have made a great difference in the public transport trajectory of Nigeria. The Honourable Minister has however chosen to refrain from joining issues with the said House Committee Chairman on FERMA because of the respect he has for the hallowed institution of the National Assembly, the Senate President and the Speaker of the Federal House of Representatives. He said, “For the respect of Mr. Speaker, and of course the Senate President and the National Assembly that I belong to, I will refrain myself from joining issues with him. He said, I have failed, and if a blind man is to assess you, your guess is as good as mine because if he has no knowledge of anything, then his knowledge becomes his god so I will not join issues with him.”
3. He views the action of addressing him as if he was before the House Committee on FERMA as deliberate, ill-motivated, misguided, self-serving and nothing but a vicious propaganda typical of a proxy representing the interest of nonconforming contractors who have constituted themselves into adversaries against the Federal Ministry of Works for insisting on best practices in project pricing, variation on price and foreign exchange differentials. There is no doubt that the vituperations of the House Committee Chairman on FERMA were from the abundance of his heart, but to say that all the roads across the country have failed for the failure of the Honourable Minister of Works to address the existing road with the resources approved or for his failure to deploy the N300 billon supplementary fund approved for him or that he is concentrating his energy on the less priority issues shows that the House Committee Chairman on FERMA either has little knowledge of the volume of road infrastructure deficits inherited from successive administrations and cost requirements for road construction or that he deliberately refused, ignored and neglected to appreciate the Renewed Hope administration’s intervention milestones or he is playing to the gallery on the prompting of the nonconforming contractors. He said,” And let me say to him that the projects Mr. President inherited were a total of 2,604 projects. As of May 29, 2023, the total cost was N13 trillion. That’s what the President inherited and a debt to contractors of N1.6 trillion. And when you look at the variation by the reason of the subsidy removal, by the reason of the floating of the dollar, you’ll find out that if you review all these projects, you will see that you will get over N19 trillion for the total ongoing projects. Mr. President did what no other President has done. He manifested all the projects in the 2024 budget with the hope to give him time to look for resources, including loans, to do these projects. I wasn’t in that meeting where the Honourable House member was said to be addressing me, and there is no way I was going to complain of resources to fix our roads because Mr. President has given very special attention to the Federal Ministry of Works. He has paid so much attention to the sufferings of Nigerians vis-a-vis the road situation, and the ministry is not the only ministry in Nigeria. Mr. President has a lot of other challenging situations and competing demands, yet he has given priority attention to the Ministry of Works”
4. He noted that the utterances of the Chairman, House Committee on FERMA were no doubt aimed at inciting the public against the government that brought him on board as it is a common sense that a person of his level and profession ought to know the method statement required of road construction. He said, “There is no way you expect some projects that have lasted 20 years, 18 years, 17 years to be done in one year. And if he says he’s an engineer, he should try and understand the processes that are involved in the Ministry of Works. It’s different from his procurement of fertilizer with his constituency project. They are two different things. You have to go to the field, you have to measure the project, you have to design it, and you have to do in-house procurement to look at it.” He further said, “The method deployed in the construction will require you to do earthwork, to compact etc and if you don’t give it one month and you start to put stone base and asphalt, it will fail. So, those times that you are preparing the sub-grade, the sub-base, the base course before the pavement,what do you call it? It is not valued by people like him as progress made”
5. Furthermore, the Honourable Minister views it as a gross violation of parliamentary procedure for the Chairman of the House Committee on FERMA to invade the legislative powers of the Senate and House Committees on Works which have been carrying out oversight functions on the Ministry and are conversant with the achievements and challenges of the Ministry. He carpeted the Chairman of House Committee on FERMA for acting outside the legislative competence of his committee. Highlighting the modest achievements of the ministry across the six Geo-Political zones, the Honourable Minister thanked the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria,*His Excellency, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR* for the unprecedented attention he has given in bridging the funding gap on the inherited projects. He said, “What we did is that we used over 90% of these funds to keep all the inherited projects alive as directed by Mr. President because a project has to be alive and in the budget before you can look for funds to assist it to be completed. That’s what we’ve done, and so for those who are bitter that we have no projects to award to them, this is the reality.” He further said, “ Over 2,600 projects plus 330 supplementary projects plus the new projects in 2024 is not a tea party. It requires commitment, and it requires dedication, which we are doing. We work on Saturday, Sundays, and Public Holidays, and somebody will say we are giving attention to less priority issues without mentioning those less priority issues that we are giving attention to.”
*
… Prays for Nigeria’s peace, unity, security, prosperity
… Holds farewell meeting with Makkah Deputy Governor
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu departed Saudi Arabia for Abuja on Wednesday after completing his Umrah pilgrimage in the holy city of Makkah, where he offered special prayers for Nigeria’s peace, security, unity and prosperity.
The President’s aircraft took off from the Royal Terminal of King Abdulaziz International Airport, Jeddah, at exactly 5:13 p.m. Saudi time, bringing his spiritual visit to the Kingdom to an end.
According to a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, Tinubu was seen off at the airport by the Deputy Governor of Makkah Region, Prince Saud bin Mishaal bin Abdulaziz Al Saud; Nigeria’s Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Yakubu Gambo; and the Consul-General, Ambassador Muazam Ibrahim Nayaya.
Before his departure, the President held a brief farewell meeting with the Deputy Governor of Makkah at the Royal Guest Palace within the airport.
Tinubu, who arrived in Saudi Arabia last Thursday, led members of the Nigerian delegation in performing the Umrah rites, including circumambulation of the Holy Ka’abah.
A major highlight of the pilgrimage was Sunday’s rare opportunity granted to the President and members of his delegation to enter the sacred Ka’abah, where they performed two raka’at prayers.
During the spiritual exercise, Tinubu offered supplications to Almighty Allah for enduring peace, improved security, national unity and economic prosperity, while seeking divine wisdom, guidance and strength to discharge his responsibilities to Nigerians. Nigerianews subscription
He also prayed for divine blessings upon the country, its leaders and citizens, expressing hope that Nigeria’s ethnic, religious and cultural diversity would become a source of national strength, cohesion and shared prosperity.
The President described the pilgrimage as an opportunity for spiritual reflection, thanksgiving and renewed dedication to the task of building a peaceful, united and prosperous Nigeria. Nigerianews subscription
He expressed appreciation to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman for the hospitality and special courtesies extended to him and his delegation.
Tinubu particularly acknowledged the rare privilege of accessing the Holy Ka’abah, describing the opportunity to pray within the sacred structure as spiritually significant. FollowPolitics
According to the statement, the President concluded the pilgrimage with renewed faith, gratitude to Almighty Allah and a strengthened resolve to pursue his administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
Onanuga said Tinubu remained committed to translating Nigerians’ aspirations into tangible improvements in living conditions and building a better country for all. Nigerianews subscription
The presidential delegation included the National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, and the governors of Sokoto, Jigawa, Kaduna, Borno and Yobe states, among other senior government officials.
The President’s return concludes a visit that combined religious observances with prayers for national stability, improved security and the success of ongoing efforts to reposition Nigeria for sustainable growth and development.
The All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN) has called on the Federal Government to urgently restore the National Agricultural Growth Scheme and Agro-Pocket (NAGS-AP) programme to improve farmers’ access to affordable agricultural inputs and strengthen food production across the country.
The association said the revival of the programme would provide farmers with better access to essential agricultural inputs, including fertilisers, improved seeds and other farm support services required to boost productivity and ensure food security.
AFAN noted that the rising cost of agricultural inputs has continued to place enormous pressure on farmers, particularly smallholder farmers, who play a critical role in Nigeria’s agricultural value chain.
According to the association, restoring the programme would help reduce the financial burden on farmers, encourage increased participation in agricultural production and support the Federal Government’s efforts to achieve food security under its agricultural transformation agenda.
The association further stressed that affordable and timely access to farm inputs remains essential to improving crop yields, expanding agricultural activities and making farming more attractive to young Nigerians.
AFAN also urged the Federal Government to strengthen collaboration with relevant agricultural institutions, state governments, financial institutions and private-sector stakeholders to ensure that farmers benefit directly from government intervention programmes.
It maintained that a sustainable agricultural sector requires consistent policies, adequate funding and effective implementation of programmes designed to support farmers at every stage of production.
The association expressed optimism that restoring NAGS-AP would contribute significantly to increased food production, job creation, rural economic development and the stabilisation of food prices across the country.
AFAN therefore appealed to the Federal Government to give the programme urgent attention as part of broader efforts to strengthen Nigeria’s agricultural sector and achieve sustainable food security.
…….Tegbe, REA MD Commend Lawal as Zamfara Unveils Electricity Policy today
The Minister of Power, Chief Joseph Olasunkanmi Tegbe, and the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of the Rural Electrification Agency (REA), Dr. Abba Abubakar Aliyu, have joined the Zamfara State Governor, Dauda Lawal, to launch the state’s Electricity Policy and inaugurate renewable energy projects aimed at enhancing electricity supply across the state.
The event, held on Wednesday, November 4, 2026, in Zamfara State, was themed “Enhancing Power Supply” and attracted key stakeholders in the electricity and renewable energy sectors.
A major highlight of the occasion was the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Zamfara State Government, the Rural Electrification Agency and other stakeholders, in the presence of the Minister of Power, to strengthen collaboration and accelerate the development of renewable energy infrastructure in the state.
Speaking at the event, Tegbe and the REA Managing Director emphasised the importance of renewable energy, particularly solar power generation, as a sustainable solution to the country’s electricity challenges.
They highlighted the need to harness Zamfara State’s abundant solar energy potential to expand electricity access, strengthen power generation capacity and provide reliable and affordable electricity to residents, businesses and industries.
The officials also commended Governor Dauda Lawal for his commitment and initiative towards developing solar-powered electricity infrastructure, describing the state’s efforts as a significant step towards achieving sustainable energy development and improving the living conditions of the people.
They further highlighted the ambition to upgrade solar power generation capacity to 200 megawatts (MW), noting that increased investment in renewable energy would contribute significantly to the state’s economic growth and development.
The Minister and the REA Managing Director also stressed the importance of collaboration between federal and state governments, development partners and private-sector investors in achieving sustainable electricity supply.
The launch of the Zamfara State Electricity Policy, alongside the inauguration of renewable energy projects and the signing of the MoU, represents a significant step in the state’s efforts to strengthen its electricity sector and embrace cleaner and more sustainable energy sources.
The initiative is expected to improve electricity access, stimulate commercial and industrial activities, attract investment, create employment opportunities and support socio-economic development across Zamfara State.
The development also aligns with the Federal Government’s commitment to expanding electricity access and accelerating Nigeria’s transition towards sustainable and renewable energy.
-
news6 years agoUPDATE: #ENDSARS: CCTV footage of Lekki shootings intact – Says Sanwo – Olu
-
lifestyle6 years agoFormer Miss World: Mixed reactions trail Agbani Darego’s looks
-
news8 years ago
-
health6 years agoChairman Agege LG, Ganiyu Egunjobi Receives Covid-19 Vaccines
-
lifestyle5 years agoObateru: Celebrating a Quintessential PR Man at 60
-
news1 year agoBREAKING: Tinubu swears in new NNPCL Board
-
health6 years agoUPDATE : Nigeria Records 790 new cases of COVID-19
-
society3 years agoBisbam CEO, Abisola Bamidele, Bags Owu Chieftaincy Title