By Abdullahi M. Gulloma
Abuja
Federal Executive Council (FEC) has approved N606 million for the contractor handling the Gurara-Abuja water pipelines to operate and maintain it for nine years, Minister of Water Resources, Alhaji Suleman Adamu, has said.
The minister, who disclosed this to journalists at the end of the weekly FEC meeting in Abuja, said the amount would be jointly paid by the Ministry of Water Resources and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
He said the water project was initiated to supply water primarily from Gurara dam to lower Usuma dam by a distance of 75 kilometres with a three nester diameter pipeline.
“This project was completed in 2008 but since then no effort was made to discharge the contractual obligation after the obligatory maintenance period. We have been working since last year to take over this pipeline in particular because it is very strategic and it is meant to augment water supply during the dry season in Abuja.
“We believe after construction it doesn’t make sense for the project to remain in the hands of the contractor for close 10 years now without our taking possession and being responsible for the operation and maintenance of the pipeline.
“The memo was approved and in the next 12 months we would have prepared our own personnel to take over the operation and maintenance of the scheme and for the contractor to totally disengage from the project site after 10 years,” he said.
Also speaking, Minister of Trade, Industry and Investment, Dr. Okechukwu Enelamah, said the council was updated on the activities of the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Committee (PEBEC) following the recent movement of the country 24 places upward in World Bank doing business report.
He said the council was also updated on second National Action Plan which involves mobilisation of Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) of government the need to do more and achieve greater success in ease of doing business in the country.
He said the plan includes the expansion of the scope of ease of doing business beyond Lagos and Kano to all states of the federation, stressing that the move would be aided by an “omnibus bill” before the National Assembly.
