The federal government has reiterated its profound satisfaction with the quality of works and engineering standards being rapidly implemented by Julius Berger plc on the Abuja-Kaduna-Zaria-Kano road project.
The Minister of State for Works, Engr. Aliyu Abubakar, who gave the government’s position in Dan Kazali at Section III of the ongoing works in Kano on Thursday.
A press statement by the media and publicity unit of the giant engineering company and made available to Blueprint on Sunday, said the federal government would not rest on its oars until the ongoing reconstruction of the Abuja-Kaduna-Kano road project is completed as planned.
Speaking to news correspondents on Thursday during his physical inspection tour of the project from Abuja to Kano, the Minister of State expressed the federal government’s full commitment to the realisation of the strategically important road project. Engr. Aliyu Abubakar reiterated that the Abuja-Kano road project was one of the priorities of the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari.
According to him, this has necessitated and occasioned proper, close and consistent monitoring visits to the project in the past few months by the Minister of Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Raji-Fashola, with powerful delegations which also included the Professor Gambari, the Chief of Staff to the President.
Responding further to newsmen’s questions on project timelines, the Minister of State restated what the Hon. Minister of Works, Babatunde Raji Fashola, said during the town hall meeting chaired by the Chief of Staff to the President on the project in Kaduna late last year.
According to Engr Aliyu Abubakar: “In the beginning, the scope was rehabilitation of the existing road. But having started the work, we realised that we need to reconstruct the road completely. This is now the stage that we are. So, if we are moving from rehabilitation to reconstruction, it takes time. It is entirely reconstructing the road.
“The road has stayed for so long without being given any much attention, especially if you talk about maintenance which makes a life span of a road longer. When this present government came, we set up a plan to ensure that all our roads are being maintained, and those that require reconstruction are being reconstructed.”