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Niger state House of Assembly has set up a 9-man Ad-hoc committee to investigate the delay in the construction and completion of Minna-Bida-Kataeregi road as well as other roads projects in the state.
The committee was set up when the state Commissioner for Works and Infrastructural Development, Alhaji Mamman Musa, appeared before members of the state House of Assembly to explain progress of work on the roads.
The house announced Hon. Muhammed Alhaji Haruna, member representing Bida Two as the chairman of the committee whereas other committee members were members representing Katcha, Gbako, Wushishi, Agwara, Borgu, Bosso, Mokwa and Lavun Constituencies served as members of the committee.
Responding, Hon. Mohammed Haruna explained that his counterparts have done the right thing by setting up Ad-hoc committee to investigate into the ongoing road projects particularly the Minna-Katayeregi-Bida road.
He gave assurance that the committee would leave no stone unturned to see to the construction and completion of especially Minna-Katayeregi-Bida road.
Earlier,Alhaji Mamman Musa, explained that the state House of assembly had in 2019 given approval to the state government to access N25billion loan from Islamic Development Bank (IDB) to finance Minna-Kataeregi-Bida, Broadcasting, Paiko-Lapai, Immani junction roads and upgrade of Suleja General Hospital.
He said the 86 kilometers Minna-Kataeregi-Bida road project was rescoped from N25 billion to N17 billion for Dantata and Sawoe construction company to handle dualisation from zero to 15 kilometers as state government counterpart funding, while IDB was expected to take over the construction of the remaining 71 kilometers
“The initial plan was to construct only one lane, but we have to reacoped the project to double lane because IDB don’t give loan for one lane road,” he said.
Musa said the loan agreement was that the state government would fund 15 kilometers part of the road starting from Kpakugun to Garatu while the IDB would fund the remaining 71kilometers, adding that 35 percent from the 15 kilometers had been completed at the sum of N11 billion.
He said plans were underway between the Federal Ministry of Finance in collaboration with IDB for possibility of starting the 71 kilometers with IDB loan in order to ensure the completion of the road before the expiration of tenure of the present administration.
