From Isaac Anumihe, Abuja
The dust raised by the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project is yet to settle with the Minister of Works, Engineer Nweze Dave Umahi calling the former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar a hypocrite out to mislead and brainwash the unsuspecting members of the public, especially the gullible, for selfish political reasons.
Atiku had accused President Bola Ahmed Tinubu of awarding contract to Hitech Construction Company Nigeria Limited because of the personal relationship between the president and the Chairman of Hitech, Chagoury, and that the demolition was done in a hurry and thus a threat to foreign investment.
But the Minister of Works, had replied that the accusations are, to say the least, intrinsically superficial, baseless, self-serving and politically- motivated to imprint malice in the minds of unsuspecting members of the public, especially the gullible.
In a statement, Special Adviser to the Minister of Works, Uchenna Orji had said that the minister has in different media fora decapitated the insinuations of the former Vice President and other desperate persons when he gave insights into the award process, the unit cost comparisons, the project review dimensions, the demolition notices and compensation plans as well as those affected by the demolition.
“I wish to categorically state that such viewpoints are false analogies, conceived by the fertile imaginations of the former Vice President and which are clearly superficial, hypocritical, diversionary, and undoubtedly motivated by ambitious political calculations.
“The former Vice President had, on April 7, 2024, criticised the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project award and cost, which he fallaciously stated, was awarded to Hitech without due process and at a cost higher than the initial amount announced by the immediate two previous administrations that attempted to execute the project. Also, on May 6, 2024, Atiku criticised the Federal Government’s bold and visionary decision to embark on a developmental journey that would redefine the economic growth trajectory of Nigeria by raising two issues, namely; that the contract was awarded to Hitech Construction Company Nigeria Limited because of the personal relationship between the President of Nigeria and the Chairman of Hitech, Chagoury, and that the demolition was done in a hurry and thus a threat to foreign investment” he stated.
On whether it underwent a procurement process, Umahi explained that the project complied 100 per cent with the provisions of the Procurement Act and was awarded based on the EPC+ F procurement process.
EPC+F is Engineering, Procurement and Construction plus Financing (EPC +F).
“For the avoidance of doubt, the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project complied 100 per cent with the provisions of the Procurement Act and was awarded based on the EPC+ F procurement process. That is to say, the project is an unsolicited bid done on EPC+F.
“Under this model of procurement, the investor provides all the designs, part of the financing and construction, while the FGN pays counterpart funds. The bid of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project came through this process. The ministry received the bid, worked on it, and sent the same to the Bureau of Public Procurement ( BPP). The BPP worked on it in accordance with the stipulations of the Procurement Act and came up with a competitive price slightly lower than the ministry’s price and even lower than the cost of similar projects awarded five years ago, including the Bodo-Bonny project awarded to Julius Berger Nigeria Plc. The BPP issued a certificate of “No Objection” on the project to the Federal Ministry of Works as required by the Procurement Act. Consequently, the Federal Ministry of Works took the certificate of “No Objection” to the Federal Executive Council (FEC), and the FEC deliberated on it and approved the same” Umahi explained .
Recall that FEC had first approved the project model on EPC+F before the process of procurement even started.
“This is a testament that the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project, section 1, followed due process. The claim of the former Vice President that the son of the President of Nigeria has interest in CDK Integrated Industries Limited is not tenable as the company that did bid for the project was Hitech Construction Company Nigeria Limited which has a full legal personality, as it were. Again, this claim is nothing but a digression showing absolute frustration of a false accuser who is bereaved of facts to substantiate his claims” Umahi said.
According to the statement, Atiku put the cost of the project per kilometer at N8.552 billion but the minister reduced it to N4.329 billion per kilometer gauge.
“The project, which was by the analysis of the former Vice President put at a cost of about N8.552 billion per kilometer of standard gauge, was meticulously and judiciously reduced to about N4.329 billion per kilometer gauge by the Minister of Works under the new design and concept. The old concept and design relied upon by the former Vice President has a 52-metre corridor with asphalt, whereas the new concept as reviewed by the Minister of Works has a 100-metre corridor with a total concrete pavement of 59.2 metres and increased size of 10 lanes and a provision for 25 metres for train track.
“As you know, the road standard used by the former Vice President in his analysis cannot stand the test of time because of the high water table at the coastal area. The quality of road design and construction by the Renewed Hope administration for the coastal road is such that it will last for 50 to 100 years. In this regard therefore, it will not be immodest to state that the former Vice President displayed the highest level of hypocrisy and was out to mislead and brainwash the unsuspecting members of the public, especially the gullible,for selfish political reasons” the statement, further explained.