The federal government has said it is implementing performance bonds and will also extract from contractors, a 10-year guarantee for all new projects.
Director of Information, Press, and Public Relations Unit, Blessing Lere-Adams, said the Minister of Works, Dave Umahi, disclosed this during an interaction with contractors responsible for road dualisation projects and the ministry’s zonal directors.
He also announced that the Federal Government, is set to disburse N431 billion to road contractors and also disclosed the ministry’s plan to concentrate on enhancing the dualised road network across the nation.
“I want to remind you that Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation is funding 50 per cent of the contract sum and that funding goes up to 2025.
“We have N431bn of money that is ready for contractors to clear but there is no certificate for it. If you are doing a job under Phase 1, make an effort to make claims, if your job involves augmentation go back to your regional director for understanding before I sign the certificate. Any certificate I sign now, I have to take account for it even when I have leave office.”
He emphasised the need for contractors to remain dedicated to one lane if their work had not yet reached the halfway mark.
Umahi also warned that the government would not entertain stories of failures on the roads due to overloading, even as he called on all the contractors to work together with him, adopting the concrete technology used in road construction in India and Singapore.
Umahi said this administration has 1800 kilometre of roads, and inherited a contract sum of about N14.1 trillion and out of which N4trillion is being paid in all the projects, some of the projects have lasted between 10 to 20years.
“We are going back to the original concept of the projects and the necessity of any additional works and also see how we get a fair deal, expecting an endorsement from the Ministry of what is not acceptable to Nigerian Society of Engineers is not possible,” he said.
