The Senate has said that “politicians and top government officials’ relentless pressure on the Federal Ministry of Works to prioritize road projects in their favour is majorly responsible for the proliferation of numerous unfinished and substandard road projects across the country.
The lawmakers expressed their dissatisfaction with the Federal Ministry of Works, particularly the Buhari administration, for their practice of awarding multiple road projects without completing any of them.
They voiced their concerns regarding the lack of progress and the impact it has on the overall development of the country’s infrastructure.
The senate also scrutinized the ‘Tax Credit Scheme’ for road construction, which was introduced by the former administration of President Muhammad Buhari through Executive Order 7 in 2021 and continued by the Bola Tinubu administration. They identified several flaws in the scheme, prompting some lawmakers to call for a public hearing to determine the transparency of the initiative.
During the discussion, Senator Adamu Aliero (Kebbi Central) expressed his belief that ending the practice of politicians exerting pressure on the Ministry of Works to secure multiple road contracts in their favour would require strong political will.
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He said, “When we assumed office in 2019, there were only 500 ongoing road projects. However, due to political pressures, particularly from ministers, senators, and other political leaders, the number of road projects increased to around 700 by 2020. As of the submission of the 2024 budget, there were nearly 1400 ongoing road projects. Despite the increased number of projects, the allocated amounts were insufficient to make a substantial impact.
Deliberating on the feasibility of the 2024 N892.4 billion works budget approved for the construction of roads and other critical infrastructure in the country, the Senate Committee on Works, chaired by Senator Barinada Mpigi, said the sum was grossly inadequate to address the road deficits in the country.