By Kingsley Omonobi

One of the Barracks under reconstruction

The new Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Barracks (military) Rehabilitation (PCBR), Mrs. Binta Muazu has threatened to terminate the contract of any contractor whose performance falls below the standard set by her committee. Mrs Muazu who undertook a two-day inspection of projects either executed or managed by the Committee in Lagos last week, insisted that her committee will not compromise on standards no matter whose ox is gored.

The PCRB chairman inspected MDGs projects as well as those of PCBR at Ojo Cantonment, Navy Town, Ojo, Airforce Base, Ikeja, NAFRC, Oshodi, GIWA Project Victoria Island.

PCBR has in the past 10 years, executed standard and quality projects that have not only stood the test of time, but have attracted rave reviews in the construction and building industry to the extent that presently, the office of the Special Adviser on Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) has gone into partnership with the committee. To this end, 43 construction, rehabilitation and medical supply projects wholly sponsored by the MDGs including schools, hospitals, living accommodation, office blocks, roads, walkways and water projects have been handed over to PCBR to personally supervise

At the Nigerian Armed Forces Resettlement Centre, (NAFRC) Oshodi, Mrs. Muazu said the PCBR was in NAFRC to have first hand information on the 14 projects including 11 MDG projects being executed in the center and to assess the problem areas as well as future challenges on site. She told AVM Aroriode that under her leadership, the Presidential Committee would work with the services and tri-service institutions as a team and that it would not compromise on standards.

Before embarking on the physical inspection of the projects, Aroriode told the delegation that from what he has seen, he was satisfied with the progress of ongoing projects at NAFRC.

He pleaded for more concession for the center from the PCBR in the rehabilitation of more projects noting that NAFRC is basically a training center that deals purely with training of soldiers for civil life.

“We cannot be rehabilitating soldiers and training them on how to integrate into civil life when the institution itself needs rehabilitation. We are short in the area of accommodation for instructors, recreational facilities, and more training halls where knowledge is to be impacted,” he said.

The team inspected a new block of 10 flats for Corporals and below (CBQ), rehabilitation of an Administrative block, a Pharmacy and a theatre for the MRS at NAFRC and certified them okay.

At Navy Town Ojo, Mrs. Binta Muazu was displeased with the sloppy job being done by some of the contractors handling rehabilitation work at the senior officers quarters. She threatened to revoke their contracts unless the job is done to specifications.

She angrily wrote off the internal works done on one block of three-bedroom blocks of eight flats and one four-bedroom block of eight flats at NNS Wey and carpeted the contractors’ for trying to deceive people by ensuring the outer works were okay whereas the inner works were nothing to write home about.

The Committee also inspected Navy projects sponsored by the MDGs’ but supervised by PCBR at Naval Barracks, Mobil road, Apapa.

After observing some shortcomings on the projects being executed, Mrs. Muazu warned officers of the Navy medical center who would be the end users of the project to ensure that accessory materials to be used by the diagnosis machine were of standard and right specification.

Another port of call by the PCBR team was the Nigeria Airforce Base, Ikeja, where the Air Officer Commanding Logistics Command, Air Vice Marshal Hassan Abubakar Nashehu poured encomiums on the Committee for the intervention it has carried out in Airforce formations and barracks across the country since inception ten years ago.

According to him, “PCBR has been a worthwhile and responsive outfit which is meeting up with responsibilities that necessitated its formation by the presidency.

At the Electronics Maintenance Depot (403 EMD), Shasha, Airforce base, where majority of the MDGs’ project were being executed by PCBR, Mrs. Muazu ordered the stoppage of work on a road construction for a shoddy job. She frowned at the drainage works and improper handling of the soil challenges.

She was however impressed with work on water supply installation, construction of the Administrative block and theatre at the MRS (hospital), the supply of medical equipment and the rehabilitation of a block of 10 classrooms at the base. There were also the supply and installation of a 16.5 KVA generators for the hospital and rehabilitation of living quarters which got the nod of the team.