N37bn renovation: FCDA has no ongoing activities in National Assembly – Spokesman

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He, however, could not ascertain whether or not the N37 billion has been released to FCDA by the office of the Accountant General for the Federation (AGF), stressing that the FCT authorities and personnel have been working earnestly to contain the coronavirus pandemic in the nation’s capital city.

However, the N37 billion for National Assembly renovation was not captured in the list of projects enlisted under the Federal Capital Territory Administration for 2020, which was uploaded on the website of the Budget Office of the Federation.

Details of the projects captured amounting to N37.287 billion approved for other capital projects on the Budget Office website include: N2 billion for Re-Construction and Dualization of Lower Usuma Dam – Gurara Road; N4 billion for Rehabilitation and Expansion of Airport Expressway Project Lot I (Bill Clinton Drive Junction/Bridge – Lugbe); N3.797 billion for Abuja Rail Mass Transit Project Lot 1 & 3; N5 billion for Construction of Tanks 1 & 6 and Associated Trunk Mains (Water Supply to Phase III Districts); N4.9 billion for completion of Roads B6, B12 & Circle Road, Abuja Central Area (Stadium – Villa – Stadium); N3 billion for construction of Top Government Functionaries Official Residences; N2 billion for extension of Inner Southern Expressway (ISEX) from Southern Parkway to Ring Road II (Christian Center/CBN – Galadimawa Roundabout) and N2 billion for the rehabilitation of Federal Secretariat Phase I.

Others are: N2 billion for construction of Southern Parkway (S8/9) from ISEX to Ring Road I (Christian Center/CBN – through NTA/FCDA – Nnamdi Azikiwe Way); N3.6 billion rehabilitation and expansion of Outer Northern Expressway Project Lot II (Kubwa road from Federal Civil Service College – Villa Roundabout); N5 billion for rehabilitation and expansion of Outer Southern Expressway from Villa Roundabout to OSEX/Ring Road 1 (RR1) Junction including 4Nos. interchange and extension of right and left-hand service carriageways to Wasa Junction (Villa Roundabout – OSEX/Shehu Shagari Junction – Apo Roundabout Junction – Wasa Junction).

Before the National Assembly shutdown, legislative activities on Wednesday, 24^th March, 2020, the skeletal work which started at the outer car park of the National Assembly had been halted for about one month.

Some of the workers who expressed displeasure over the misery behind the huge amount approved for the renovation demanded details/scope of work.

A coalition of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) namely: Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), BudgIT and Enough Is Enough (EiE) and 583 Nigerians had in December 2019 filed a suit at the Federal High Court, Abuja, with Ref. No: FHC/ABJ/CS/1633/2019 to “restrain and stop President Muhammadu Buhari and Mrs Zainab Ahmed, Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning from releasing N37 billion allocated for the renovation of the National Assembly complex to the Federal Capital Development Agency and the National Assembly until an impact assess.”

The Court is yet to fix a date for the hearing of the suit.

NIGERIAN TRIBUNE