FEC okays N5.4bn increase for Enugu/Onitsha road project

THE Federal Executive Council, (FEC) has approved augmentation of the contractual cost of the Enugu to Onitsha road by N5.4 billion.

It brings the total cost to N15.7 billion from N10.3 billion.

The decision was reached at the council meeting presided over by acting President Yemi Osinbajo at the presidential villa, Abuja on Wednesday.

Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, who briefed State Houses correspondents after the meeting, said the memo from the Power, Works and Housing Ministry was the only memo that was discussed at the three-hour meeting.

He said: “His memo was the only one that survived and his memo was for augmentation of an existing road contract.”

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The Power, Works and Housing Minister, Babatunde Fashola said in his remark, explained that the augmentation will accommodate the need for erosion control measures and drains.

He added that the contract which was first awarded in 2012, is part of the series of roads captured as Umanna- Udi Agu- Ebenebe- Amansi- Awka- and spurred to Umumba road, section 2 in Enugu state.

Fashola further said: “The contract was awarded in 2012 covering Enugu to Onitsha high way. Because of lack of appropriate budgeting and funding, all of these projects could not be completed and there were also failures in implementation, so we inherited it. There was also the need to provide for erosion control measures and drains and that has led to revision of the cost.

“It was that revision to enable us to complete the road project that was presented, discussed and approved by the Council today.”