…Praises Tinubu’s progress on Infrastructure

By John Alechenu

The Minister of Works, Engr. David Umahi, has expressed strong dissatisfaction with remarks made by the Chairman of the House Committee on the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA), Hon. Remi Oseni.

Umahi criticized Oseni’s comments, which suggested that the minister lacks a concrete plan to repair Nigeria’s deteriorating roads and is overly focused on the N15 trillion Lagos-Calabar Super Highway project at the expense of essential road maintenance.

Addressing journalists in Abuja, Umahi dismissed the lawmaker’s remarks as unfounded and accused Oseni of harboring a personal grudge. He suggested that the lawmaker was using his privileged position to make baseless accusations against both him and the Ministry. Oseni had previously voiced his criticism during a meeting with FERMA representatives last week, stating that Umahi’s priorities as minister were misplaced.

Oseni remarked, “If you are telling us that the reason you have failed in fixing our road infrastructure is due to resource constraints, don’t let me take you up on that. You seem more focused on less critical issues. Last year, you received N300 billion in supplementary budget approval, yet I see no urgency to fix Nigerian roads.”

In response, Umahi, who was not present at the hearing but was briefed by his team, said, “The lawmaker seems to harbor resentment. His comments don’t reflect the professional work of the 10th National Assembly. No one has ever accused me of failure; my record speaks for itself. His remarks sound like those of a contractor’s representative. We make no apologies for our stance on stopping frequent requests for Variation of Price (VOP) and Foreign Exchange Differentials on contracts. It makes no sense to award a contract in October and then have requests for VOP by November.”

Regarding the N300 billion approved by President Bola Tinubu for emergency road projects, Umahi reported substantial progress: “I am pleased to inform you that over 330 road projects, including bridges — more than 80 percent of those captured — have been completed.”

The Minister demanded an apology from Oseni for what he described as repeated attempts to undermine the Ministry’s efforts and the Tinubu administration’s progress in road infrastructure development.