Umahi Inspects East-West Road, Others, Threatens Revocation of Delayed Contracts

Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja and Blessing Ibunge in Port Harcourt

The Minister of Works, David Umahi,  has directed the acceleration of work on the East-West Road, the Enugu-Port Harcourt Expressway as well as the Bodo-Bonny Road, among others.

On one of the sites, Umahi directed the contractor, Messrs Reynolds Construction Company (RCC) to deploy more resources to hasten the pace of work or face re-scoping and re-award of the contract.

He reminded the contractor that he has up to the end of April, 2025 to deliver a section of the carriageway, a statement yesterday by the Director of Press and Public Relations, Mohammed Ahmed stated.

At the Enugu-Port Harcourt Expressway, Section III (Umuahia-Aba),  he applauded the contractor, Messrs Arab Contractors (Nig.) Ltd on the quality of work but instructed the company to deploy in two more sites to speed up the construction and meet the set deadline.

Also,  at the Section IV (Aba – Port Harcourt) of the same alignment being handled by Messrs China Civil Engineering Construction Company (CCECC), the minister expressed displeasure over the slow pace of work, noting that the company has only been able to access N7 billion out of the N21 billion provided for the project, last year. 

Consequently, he instructed the Federal Controller of Works, Rivers State to issue a warning to the contractor, promising to terminate it, if there are no improvements in the tempo of work.

The tour of duty also took the minister to the Bodo-Bonny Road, where he, again, voiced discontent with the level of work achieved. He urged the Contractor, Messrs Julius Berger Plc to upscale their deployment of men, materials and machines, despite working throughout the Yuletide holidays. 

The project, a critical component of the South-South zone’s infrastructure development, is a two-lane road with hard shoulders, 17 bridges spanning 3,200 meters and reinforced concrete pavement on Bonny Island. 

At all construction sites visited, Umahi stressed the urgency to meet deadlines, emphasising that all federal contractors must intensify their efforts to ensure the timely realisation of projects.

According to him, this is in line with the federal government’s resolve to enhance infrastructure and transportation as enablers of growth, succinctly captured in the Renewed Hope Agenda. The essence, he said, is to improve connectivity, as well as stimulate socio-economic growth.

The minister told the federal controllers of works to present at least four completed projects, each,  for commissioning from February to  May 20, this year. “The expectation is that every controller delivers on his mandates, according to specifications and time allotted. There is no room for further delays,” he declared.

In light of the delay in the delivery of some projects, the minister said that the ministry was poised to take decisive action. 

“The Ministry will not tolerate delays. Any contractor, who does not meet his contractual obligations, will face consequences,  cumulating into a 14-day notice of termination of contract,” he added, emphasising that such actions would apply to all underperforming contracts.

Despite the challenges, he reassured that President Bola Tinubu remains fully committed to the completion of inherited projects., as well as the four Legacy Projects he initiated. 

“The president has not abandoned these projects. It is the contractors, who have delayed the work. This year, we will be stricter in ensuring that projects are completed on course,” he assured.

At the site of the  the dualisation of East-West Road, Section II-II (Ahoada-Kaiama) and the construction of multiple box culverts at flood affected areas on East-West Road, Section II-II (Ahoada-Kaiama) in Rivers and Bayelsa States, Umahi disclosed that he was highly impressed with the quality of work.

However, he directed the speeding up of the process through the addition of more resources to the job. He reminded them that the April, 2025 delivery date remains sacrosanct. 

He said that due to the nature of the soil in the areas affected by floods, where box culverts are being constructed, continuously reinforced concrete pavement should be used. The affected area is about 2.3 kilometres.

The Project Manager of Setraco,  Isaa Michel,  promised to hasten the pace of work, to meet the deadline.