The Minister of Works, Senator Dave Umahi, on Tuesday barred directors in the Ministry and Federal Controllers of Works across the country from going on break during this yultide period.
This, he said, is to ensure vehicular traffic and gridlocks are checkmated on roads across Nigeria.
He also directed contractors working on federal roads to ensure the routes remain open for travellers.
The Minister specifically warned that closure of project sites without authorisation is not allowed during the festive season.
Road projects including the Abuja–Lokoja Expressway, the Abuja drainage canals, and key corridors in Sokoto, Katsina and Kebbi states must not be closed under any circumstances due to their strategic importance.
Sen Umahi handed down these warnings in Abuja during an emergency meeting with all the Directors, Zonal Directors, and Controllers of Works in the Ministry, and Managing Directors, and Project Managers of companies handling the Ministry's road projects.
Stressing that strategic highways and bridges must remain operational during the holiday period and afterwards, the Minister of Works insisted on compliance of the directives,
According to him, the directors and Federal Controllers of Works are expected to be on site to ensure that ongoing road projects do not obstruct the free flow of traffic during the festive period.
He said "Roads must be freed. No controller should go on holiday. Abuja–Kano has improved, and nobody is complaining again.
"We will sustain the tempo. Between now and February, I will personally visit the site. Any embarrassment must stop. Directors involved must be on the roads, and any pothole must be fixed. The road is now largely motorable, and we will keep it that way."
Sen Umahi added "No contractor is permitted to close a site without the approval of the Federal Ministry of Works.
"Some sites must not close at all. Abuja–Lokoja cannot close. Some corridors are simply too critical. We would like some of our contractors that may be taking holidays to understand what is going on in their sites. Dont close the roads. Open them for vehicular movements.
“There must be approval by the Federal Ministry of Works before any closure. That is what the contract says and that is what the procedure says. We do not just close and open roads. We need to know.
"If you want to close, there are signs that must be in place. For example, the Abuja–Kano Road cannot just be closed. No place should be closed without our permission. This is very important, and I plead with you to be thorough on the roads,” the Minister stated
Noting that recent disruptions on the Abuja–Lokoja highway embarrassed the government, he however urged for patience,
He said emergency interventions were ongoing to restore traffic flow in those areas.
Speaking specifically on the traffic gridlock on the Abuja–Lokoja Road, he directed that the road be further opened up ahead of the Christmas season to ease vehicular movement.
He harped on the need for urgent and coordinated action by contractors and supervising officials to eliminate bottlenecks and ensure smooth traffic flow on all major federal highways nationwide.
He took time during the emergency meeting to commend contractors for embracing President Bola Tinubu’s policy shift from asphalt to concrete road technology
This shift, he said, is difficult but a necessary transition to improve durability and reduce recurrent failures on the roads.
“I commend you for agreeing to adapt to the new policy of Mr President on concrete road technology. Many of you even requested that your projects be changed from asphalt to concrete. That is not easy, but it is necessary,” he stated.
Stressing that asphalt roads often deteriorate within 10 to 15 years due to drainage failures and poor soil conditions, the Minister said that concrete roads offer longer life spans if properly constructed.
At the meeting, he also announced reorganisation of the Ministry of Works.
According to him, directors and senior engineers would be redeployed to the field to supervise projects directly.
He said that poor supervision hastt become one of the biggest challenges in the delivery of federal infrastructure.
To this end, the Minister promised to end what he described as office-based engineering.
“Everybody is going to the field. Only the Permanent Secretary and I will remain in the office. Every director will supervise a major project, and performance will be judged strictly by output,” he stated
The Minister also announced plans to digitalise project monitoring, including the creation of zonal project portals where contractors would upload site updates, valuations and certifications in real time.
The new system, according to him, would ensure that project evaluations and certifications were completed within 48 hours, improve transparency and reduce delays associated with manual processes.
Answering question on the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA) during the meeting, the Minister of State for Works, Hon. Mohammad Goronyo insisted that the Agency has been alive to its responsibilities.
Noting that timetable was drawn covering the whole country, he said that the media has been taken round many projects to see what is going on, even as many projects are been commissioned.
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