By Owen Eresoyen, Benin
Minister of Works, Engr David Umahi has threatened to terminate the contract for the completion of the Lokoja – Benin federal road awarded at the cost of N870 billion.
Umahi who spoke to Journalists in Auchi, Edo State said that the Contractors handling the projects have been carrying out shoddy starts disclosing that he had directed that the Contractors handling sections 1-1V of the Lokoja – Benin Road in Kogi and Edo States, to immediately sign the documents on the reviewed Contracts or face the termination of their Job- projects on the spot.
The minister had earlier met with representatives of Mother Cat, CCEC, Dantata & Sawoe, CGC and RCC, the contractors handling the project, in Abuja, where he warned against delay in executing the projects on specifications disclosing that within seven days will be comprehensive audit of Ongoing Projects to know the status of works done , the Capacity of personnel and equipment being used by the Contractors.
While accusing the Contractors handling the projects of playing pranks, wondering why the Contractors who were part of the process of re- scoping and reviewing the Contract documents after agreeing to do the Job based on the new specification, the minister said that the project was initially N121 billion but before the administration of President Bola Tinubu, the project was already reviewed to about over N870 billion.
The minister said: ”The project was initially N121 billion, but before the administration of President Bola Tinubu, the project was already reviewed to about over N870 billion. When I came in as minister, I saw that the project was over bloated, and I refused to take the No Objection to the Federal Executive Council (FEC). I had to go through the road myself and I realized that some sections of the road couldn’t survive asphalt, so, we started a meeting that took us over five months with all the Contractors. In the meetings, we agreed to re-scope the project.
“We said that the new lanes should be done on Concrete and the other ones done on asphalt, so we kept the contracts up and we all signed the documents and based on signing the documents. We took it to the Bureau of public procurement (BPP). From the BPP, we went to FEC and before we went to FEC, we demanded for them to approve that they could do the Job. They all gave us letters of approval”, he said.
The minister said that the Contractors were given the Jobs without having the required manpower and equipment to do the task and warned that henceforth any contractor signing a contract must do so alongside the basic rate and timeline
He added that “So, the Position of the government is that if you are not signing the contracts between today and tomorrow, you will forgo the Job. You can go to court. We will not enter into any Condition for further negotiation. This Contract is over N2 billion per Kilometer. You don’t have the equipment to do the work. Let me even assure you that if you are signing the contract, you will sign it alongside the basic rates.
“You will sign it alongside the timeline table and you deploy it in three sections or I will terminate the Job Enough of Playing with the psyche of the people, disclosing that the ministry would not allow any contractor to hold the Country to ransom or to impose their Conditions on the ministry”, he added.
