NNPC releases N621 billion for rehabilitation of 21 roads
By Kola Adeyemi
Lagos – The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), has handed over a cheque of N621.24 billion for the rehabilitation of 21 critical roads across the country .
Mr Hakeem Bello, Special Adviser, Communications to the Minister of works, Babatunde Raji Fashola confirmed this in a statement
In the statement statement issued in Abuja , the roads are to be undertaken through the Tax Credit Scheme under the Executive Order 7 signed by President Muhammadu Buhari in 2019.
Bello said Fashola in his remarks before the presentation of the cheque explained that the Tax Credit Scheme, which was inherited from the previous administration, was meant as a strategic partnership with the Private Sector.
The statement also quoted the Minister as saying that the current administration was already using scheme for the construction and rehabilitation of Kabba-Obajana Road in Kogi State and the Apapa-Oworonsoki Road in Lagos.
He pointed out that contrary to the belief in some quarters that the Scheme was meant for only big companies like the Dangote Group, the scheme was open to all the members of the Private Sector.
“The Tax Credit Scheme is a policy that we inherited from the previous administration. It was there but it was never used”, Fashola said .
The Minster revealed adding that it was in the life of the present administration that the scheme was given life and because it had an expiration date the ” Executive Order 7 had to be put in place to enable government use it to address the Kabba-Obajana, and “the difficult Apapa-Oworonsoki Roads which is serving the Apapa Port.”
Describing the signing of the cheque as “a big show of confidence by the NNPC”, Fashola expressed delight that contrary to the earlier impression created in some quarters, the scheme was now attracting other sectors of the economy including the manufacturing and telecommunications firms.
The Minister, who said some of the roads had subsisting contracts that were over ten years old, pointed out that the NNPC was not taking over but funding the roads to ensure completion.
“One of the things we have done is to ask the contractors that they should not ask for the review of the contracts throughout the duration of the projects”.
“So we are putting in a governance process and that governance process requires us to do certification of their certificates promptly within five days.
” Ss soon as the certificates are certified they would be escalated to the NNPC which would be required to pay within 30 days,” the Minister said.
He disclosed that the staff of the Ministry have certain number of days within which to act to certify the certificates.
The Minister gave assurances that all the unpaid certificates that were in existence before the scheme was approved and all the certificates that budget provisions were inadequate to pay, would be paid as from signing of the contract with the NNPC .
” What this means is that there would be money to pay the contractors who would in turn pay their suppliers of construction materials in the chain of distribution of wealth across the divide,” the statement added.
He urged the contractors handling the road projects to go out there and do the best they could to meet the expectations of Nigerians.
Earlier in his remarks, the representative of the Group Managing Director of the NNPC and Chief Finance Officer of the organization, Mr. Umar Ajiya, said the Corporation was motivated by the poor state of some of the nation’s roads to brace the scheme.
He said the symbolic presentation of the N621 billion cheque was a way of contributing to the Federal Government efforts to give Nigerians befitting road networks.
The Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service, Mr. Muhammad Nami, in his remarks, said the scheme was to encourage taxpayers to use company income tax payable by them to fix the nation’s critical infrastructure in exchange for tax credit.
Roads to be covered are in the North Central, totaling 791kilometres which are the dualization of Ilorin-Jebba-Mokwa/Bokani Junction Road Section I: Ilorin-Jebba In Kwara State, dualization of Ilorin-Jebba-Mokwa/Bokani Junction Road Section II: Jebba-Mokwa-Bokani Junction In Kwara/Niger States and dualization of Suleja-Minna Road in Niger State.
Also in the zone are the dualization of Suleja-Minna Road in Niger State Phase II, Reconstruction of Bida-Lambata Road in Niger State, Agaie – Katcha – Baro Road, Emergency Repairs of failed section of Mokwa – Makera – Tegina – Kaduna State border in Niger State, Minna – Zungeru – Tegina road and Bida – Minna Road.
In the South-South, three roads totaling 81.90 kilometres which are under the scheme include rehabilitation of Odukpani-Itu-Ikot Ekpene Road in Cross River State Section I: Odukpani-Itu Bridge Head in Cross River/Akwa Ibom States, dualization of outstanding portion of Odukpani-ltu-lkot Ekpene, and dualization of Oku-Iboku Power Plant Section of the Odukpani-Itu-Ikot-Ekpene Road in Cross River/Akwa Ibom States.
The roads chosen in the South East, aggregating to122 kilometres, include rehabilitation of Umuahia (Ikwuano)-Ikot Ekpene Road: Umuahia-Umudike in Abia State and the dualization of Aba-Ikot Ekpene Road in Abia/Akwa Ibom States.
In the North East, roads involved total 117 kilometres, including the rehabilitation of Cham-Numan Section of Gombe-Yola Road in Adamawa State, construction of Bali – Serti Road in Taraba State and rehabilitation of Gombe – Biu Road in Gombe/Borno State while in the North West the roads chosen, which aggregate to 283.5kilometres, include Rehabilitation of outstanding sections of Gada – Zaima – Zuru – Gamji Road Phase II in Kebbi State and Rehabilitation of Zaria-Funtua-Gusau-Sokoto-Birnin Kebbi.
In the South West, roads chosen are rehabilitation and expansion of Lagos-Badagry Expressway (Agbara Junction-Nigeria/Benin Border) in Lagos State and the dualization of Ibadan – Ilorin Road (Route A2) Section II in Oyo State (Oyo – Ogbomosho) which aggregate to 114 kilometres.
The symbolic cheque presentation ceremony was followed by a signing of Funding Intervention Agreement by the NNPC, FIRS, the Ministry of Works and Housing and the Contractors. (vitalnews)
