…says building to be ready in 2 weeks
By Fortune Eromosele, ABUJA
The Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Sadiya Umar Farouq, has disclosed that renovation of the headquarters of the National Emergency Management Agency, NEMA was at 92 percent completion.
She made this known during an inspection visit to the ongoing renovation of the NEMA HQ in Abuja on Thursday, where she noted that the building would be ready in two weeks and a date would be fixed for commissioning.
According to her, “We can all see for ourselves that the work is nearly in completion. From what the engineers have told me, about 92 percent completion has been reached. They assured me that in the next two weeks precisely, this place will be fully completed and we will be able to commission the project.
“I’m very impressed with the level of work. It started in 2019 but then they were only mobilised and it stopped for some time before the coming of the new NEMA DG. I must commend his zeal and diligence in ensuring that this work continues. It is extremely important that NEMA has a befitting office where staff have a conducive atmosphere to discharge their primary responsibility of immediate response to disasters in this country.”
Speaking in the same vein, the Director-General, NEMA, Mustapha Habib Ahmed, said earlier on, funds were not available for the project but he appreciated the federal government for the resources to finish the project and making it ready for commissioning under the Buhari-led administration.
He said, “There were no funds available for this project. Contractors were just mobilised and the work was not going anywhere. So there was a need to see that the work that this administration started, the administration should commission it also. The Minister has come here to see for herself and assess the whole situation. From her view she seems to be very impressed with what we’ve done here.”
The NEMA boss further appreciated the work being done by the contractors and revealed that by April ending, the Agency ought to have relocated back to its own building.
“The contractors have done a very good job. They are about to give us a world class NEMA building. You can see here that we have clinic, control centre and we have structures to accommodate everybody. The place we are using temporarily, some don’t even have desks to operate, so there was need to really relocate back here. By the end of this month, we would be coming back here,” he said.
It will be recalled that the NEMA Headquarters located beside DSTV 8 Adetokunbo Ademola Crescent in Maitama, Abuja was billed for renovation in 2019.
Since then, the Agency has been renting a place in WAEC office at Maitama, Abuja.