Senate seeks dedicated funding for 2nd Niger Bridge

The Senate has ordered dedicated funding for the 2nd Niger Bridge project.

The chairman, Senate Committee on Works, Senator Adamu Aliero, disclosed this when his team inspected the progress of work on the project.

Expressing satisfaction with the level of work done on the bridge, Aliero said that funding of the project would not be a problem.

He said the Senate had given a standing order to the Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Works on the funding of the project.

He said one of the funding sources of the bridge was the recovered loot from politicians by the Federal Government.

He added, “The funding arrangements are in place. Most of the contractors doing contract with the Federal Ministry of Works are complaining of lack of funding, but this project is one that is not suffering from lack of funds.

“Adequate arrangements have been made to fund it with the National Sovereign Investment Authority and recovered looted funds by the government.

“Any time the contractor has generated certificate, he is paid, that’s why work is moving speedily and progressively. We are optimistic that if the present tempo is sustained, we will be able to hand over this project by 2022,” Aliero stated.

Responding to the concern expressed by some residents that the Julius Berger’s consultant on the project lives in South Africa, Aliero said, “The consultant living in South Africa is not a problem.

“They have local partners that are doing the work for them while the consultant visits from time to time.

“There are many Nigerian engineers working in this place; 70 per cent of the labour are Nigerians. They are the ones providing the services. The company is complying with the local content law.”

Aliero expressed optimism that with the speed at which work was going on, the project would be completed on schedule.

“They are doing the work at the highest level of engineering design. Adequate measures have been taken by the contractor to avoid all the mistakes of the past on the first Niger Bridge, that is why even the design was given to a foreigner, a German and it’s done in such a way that the bridge when constructed will last for 100 years .

“We are highly impressed that the contractor is doing a good job. We have not seen anything to complain about. We are satisfied with what we saw,” the committee stated.