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Why we awarded Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project to Hitech – Minister
Federal Government on Saturday explained why it awarded the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project to Hitech Construction Company Ltd.
The Minister of Works, Sen. Dave Umahi, made the explanation during an inspection tour of the highway project in Lagos.
“Some people say that it didn’t go through a competitive bidding.
“I want to explain this: we have three types of procurement allowed by law,” he said.
Umahi listed the three types as restrictive procurement, selective/competitive bidding, and open bidding.
“When we started this project, we asked for companies that have up to five wirtgne concrete paver.
“You will agree with me that until we started this, the concrete paver was not common in Nigeria as it is today.
“We had to look for a company that had done this kind of project before, and that is Hitech.”
He noted that Hitech reconstructed the Oworonshoki Apapa Road.
“We saw that they got it right; so, we called them on Section 1.
“Then, we used restrictive bidding, which we sent to BPP (Bureau for Public Procurement) and we sent to the Federal Executive Council and they looked at it and corrected where they should and passed it accordingly.
“When other companies started bringing in some equipment, because they saw that Ministry of Works is insisting, especially where we have high water table, that we must use concrete, they started to bring in concrete equipment,” he said.
Umahi said that the Federal Government consequently opened Section 2 of the project to selective bidding and selected some companies and they bid.
He said that Hitech won the bidding.
The minister said that in Section 3A and 3B, the same thing happened.
“We have not gone outside the law, we have not gone outside the Procurement Act.”
He emphasised that President Bola Tinubu did not recommend any company for the highway project.
“ I want to say that there is no corruption in it. It is very transparent,” he added. (NAN)
The Kano state governor, Alhaji Abba Yusuf, has requested members of the state house of Assembly to move to a convenient site for legislative functions to allow for demolition of the Assembly Complex for a new model one.
The governor in a letter addressed to the speaker of the house, Hon. Ismail Falgore, appreciated the cordial relationship between the executive arm under his leadership and the legislative arm under the leadership of the speaker and further announced his intention to demolished the building.
Reading the letter on the floor of the house during plenary, the speaker announced the intention of the state government to construct a new and befitting chamber that would stand the taste of time.
The governor therefore admonished them to move to a convenient site where they could continue to carryout their legislative functions effectively before the completion of the new chamber.
In his response to the letter, the majority of the house hon. Lawan Husseini, urged the governor to ensure transparency and due process is followed in awarding the contract.
He advised that, the contract should be awarded to a competent contractor who will ensure standards and the completion of the project at the appropriate time.
The National Economic Council on Thursday kicked against the current livestock rearing system in Nigeria, saying there is a need to change from the old ways to modern practice.
The Council, chaired by Vice President Kashim Shettima, took the stand during its meeting at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
The meeting comes amidst the spate of attacks in parts of the country, including Plateau, Benue, and Kwara States where scores of citizens have been killed by suspected gunmen.
Briefing State House Correspondents shortly after the meeting, Governor Douye Diri of Bayelsa State said NEC emphasised the need to work towards modernising livestock production in Nigeria.
“Council emphasised the fact that we cannot continue to live in the past, and we must now work towards modernising livestock production in Nigeria,” he said.
According to him, the council noted that the current system of animal husbandry in the country is fuelling the farmers/herders clash, as witnessed recently in parts of the country.
Governor Diri explained that the new Ministry of Livestock Development has also revealed an Accelerated Livestock Development and Growth Strategy, which targets to boost revenue generation from the sector to between $70 billion and $90 billion by 2035.
Clashes between nomadic cattle herders and farmers over land use are common in central Nigeria.
Benue State Governor Hyacinth Alia had earlier blamed the recent attacks in the Ukum and Logo local government areas on “suspected herdsmen”.
With many herders belonging to the Muslim Fulani ethnic group, and many farmers Christian, the attacks in the Middle Belt often take on a religious or ethnic dimension. Two attacks by unidentified gunmen earlier this month in neighbouring Plateau state left more than 100 people dead.
Back-to-back massacres — more than 50 people killed in two districts — in Plateau state this month have marked a serious escalation in the state, with authorities scrambling to contain the attacks in a region where ethnic tensions have long simmered.
Families of slain Plateau residents weep after marauders killed their loved ones in overnight attacks
Plateau state authorities have claimed the killings were part of a “genocide” that was “sponsored by terrorists”.
Critics say that rhetoric masks the true causes of the conflict — disputes over land and a failure by authorities and police to govern the countryside.
A local herder group denounced the Plateau state killings while also noting that its own members have been under attack by farmers.
Land grabbing, political and economic tensions between local “indigenes” and those considered outsiders, as well as an influx of hardline Muslim and Christian preachers, have heightened divisions in Plateau state in recent decades.
When violence flares, weak policing all but guarantees indiscriminate reprisal attacks.
Across the wider Middle Belt, including in Benue, land used by farmers and herders is coming under stress from climate change and human expansion, sparking deadly competition for increasingly limited space.
Members of The Progressive Lecturers Network, comprising lecturers from the seven tertiary intuitions in Rivers have thrown their weight behind the declaration of a state of emergency in the state, describing it as a timely and necessary step that averted total breakdown of law and order.
In a communiqué read by their President, Wiri ThankGod, after an emergency congress in Port Harcourt, the academic group commended the President for what they termed a “decisive intervention” that restored peace in a state that was “almost at a point of explosion.”
“We thank the President for the restoration of peace in Rivers State through the declaration of a state of emergency, as the state was almost at a point of explosion if not for the timely intervention of Mr. President.”
The group also expressed confidence in the leadership of the Sole Administrator of the state, Retired Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas.
It hailed his neutrality, courage, and early signs of commitment to good governance.
“We congratulate the Sole Administrator of Rivers State, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ekwe Ibas (Retrd) on his appointment and courage and neutrality demonstrated so far,” the communiqué read.
They express their commitment to peace and development and announced plans to launch a state-wide awareness campaign to sensitize the public on the importance of supporting the federal government’s efforts in Rivers State.
They urged other stakeholders to align with the Renewed Hope Agenda for the betterment of the state.
“As a network of academics, we believe in and stand for respect for the rule of law. We will continue to open our doors for consultation and inclusiveness in governance,” the group stated.
The Progressive Lecturers Network also commended President Tinubu for appointing Rivers indigenes into positions of trust, particularly, former Governor Nyesom Wike and Senator Magnus Abe in key roles.
They further lauded the administration for its attention to major infrastructural and educational projects in the state, including the rehabilitation of the Eleme section of the East-West Road and the approval for the establishment of the Federal University of Environment and Technology in Ogoni.
In addition to their support for the state of emergency, the lecturers extended gratitude to President Tinubu for the recent release of N50 billion for lecturers’ allowances, describing the move as a significant boost to morale in the education sector.
They say the gesture has rekindled trust in the federal government among academics nationwide.