FG promises to deliver 2nd Niger bridge next year

Chinazor MegboluThe Federal Government through the Minister of Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Raji Fashola on Sunday has harped on the completion of the second Niger bridge by next year.

He said this at an event organised by the News Agency of Nigeria to mark the 6th anniversary of the Buhari administration in Abuja, saying the construction of the bridge kicked off on September 1, 2018.

“The bridge, which will serve as a major link between the south-east and the south-west will be delivered between the second and third quarters of 2022,” he said.

Fashola pointed out that the construction time was lost as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic last year and also buttressed that the work had gone beyond the water level.

Fashola further explained the construction would facilitate the influx of investments to the south-east when completed.

According to him; “so, what you see currently is the final work. The sub-structure which entailed building cement structures underwater often costs a lot of money.

“We should finish the bridge next year between the second quarter and third quarter.

“The bridge is 1.6km long and furnished with other ancillary infrastructure, including a 10.3km highway and an interchange. The bridge spans from Asaba in Delta state to Ozubulu, Ogbaru and other communities in Anambra State”.

The former governor of Lagos State, however, maintained that the Federal government’s investments in road project and infrastructural development have been impacting various economic activities throughout the whole country.

He also noted that more wealth and job opportunities have been created with 850 contracts awarded and 13,000 kilometres of roads and bridges under construction and repairs across Nigeria’s federal highways.

“President Muhammadu Buhari’s commitment to improving infrastructure sits squarely at the centre of the progressive ideal to improve the human condition.

“This connects many more doors and it is the most legitimate way for distributing money across board.

“One of the reasons our party, the All Progressives Congress (APC) is called progressives is because there is a commitment to the progressive ideals.

“We could be any other thing but we deliberately choose to be progressives and the common element that binds progressives is the resolve to improve the human condition and that’s what drives us,” Fashola said.