Umahi: A Minister’s masterstroke that unsettles Construction Union

By Chris Ochayi

The Federation of Construction Industry, FOCI, recently passed a conjunctionally verdict laced with bare toxicity on the activities of the Minister of Works, Senator David Umahi , while accusing him of formulating policies that allow random termination of road projects.

It said recent various policy pronouncements by the Minister were not in line with the standard conditions of contracts.

The President of FOCI, Chief Vincent Barrah made the allegations during the 68th annual General meeting of the construction workers’ union held in Abuja, where he slammed the Minister’s policy somersaults since he assumed office.

Barrah said the policies are forcing many employers (construction firms) to retrench their workers.

He went further to note imposition of contract prices and random termination of projects by the ministry over lack of funding as breach to standard conditions of contract, been committed by Umahi.

Apart from FOCI’s President, other speakers used the opportunity of the meeting to blast the Minister’s style of leadership.

They include the National President of Construction and Civil Engineering Senior Staff Association, Ayodeji Adeyemo and the President of National Union of Civil Engineering Construction Furniture and Wood Workers, Stephen Okoro among others.

Barrah said, “For instance, imposition of contract prices and non-contractual termination of contracts by the ministry due to its inability to fund projects are unacceptable.”

But in jux​ta​posing Barrah’s accusation of the Minister and reminiscing historic event that characterized road projects awards in the country vividly depicted deep disconnect in his outburst. Barrah’s deliberately heaping such accusations on the Minister was in bad taste and efforts in futility geared towards distracting him from focusing on the determination to achieve the mandate of the ministry under the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Ahmed Bola Tinubu’s administration.

Whereas Barrah failed woefully to address the rule of engagement in contract awards in regard to sanctions for defaulting contractors , who failed to complete and deliver road projects within the timeframe of the projects execution, unfortunately concentrated on what he assumed was the fault of the Minister.

I’m not the mouthpiece of the minister neither his Ministry’s anyway but people like Barrah should be told the stark truth that it couldn’t be business as usual any more. Some drastic steps must be taken to right the wrong of the past if we should move forward as a nation.

And this is the price the Minister of Works, Senator David Umahi is paying with all the barrage of accusations and criticisms being orchestrated at him from the pit of hell just because he introduced certain rules to reorder the system.

It never occured to the FOCI boss to ponder why contracts awarded to his members with a completion timeline of 36 months will remain stagnated to up to the period of 18 years without completion..

Attempting to mislead the public on issue as sacrosanct as road construction, reconstruction and rehabilitation, which have gulped quantum some of money without commiserate impact on the motorists and other road users due majorly to unpatriotic and dishonesty on part of the contractors is unacceptable.

FOCI cannot dig to unearth reality as why contractors after collecting funds for projects would either launder or divest such funds into other businesses or embarked on frivolity or extravagant spending to detrimental of the real purpose.

This crime is heinous than just blaming the Minister’s policies for been responsible for “The worsening condition of roads we see across the country and, of course, the laying-off of workers”, attributed to FOCI.

The construction body was economical with the fact on ground that three major highways awarded to its members on November 2006, with completion timeline of 36 months maintained work in progress status for 18 years.

The Abuja-Lokoja road East West road and Kano Maiduguri awarded in sections to over 12 contractors in November 2006 by former President Olusegun Obasanjo under the Presidential Initiative could not be completed after 18 years.

It was the same case with numerous other projects scattered across the country that infuriated Senator Umahi to make a vow to end the antic of hide and seek contractors without basic equipment amidst loss of lives on roads to either terminate or preventing incompetent contractors from accessing government contracts.

Umahi vowed to put in place adequate measures to end the old practice where contractors delayed execution of highways projects in the country unnecessarily.

He also accused some of them of not having enough equipment to execute roads projects awarded to them.

He was angry that “Many contractors indulged in playing games with government at the expense of lives been lost to road crashes on account of deplorable condition of the roads due to failures of contractors to work on them.

It’s on this note he therefore , assured Nigerians that the ministry under his leadership will adopt a pragmatic measures to end the old order of unnecessary delays in the execution of road projects by contractors across Nigeria.

Bold teps according to him have been taken to rejig the monstrous contract price variation clause which was a major clog in wheel of progress of project execution over the years.

He said as part of strategic infrastructure development master plan of the present administration, he introduced responsive approaches which were adopted as the Ministry’s measures to overcome the challenges of road infrastructure development in the country.

Rather than shift the blame game of projects termination on incompetence and lackluster attitude o.n the part of contractors, it’s unacceptable for FOCI to try to heap such blame on the Minister’s policies .

No imposition of contract prices and random termination of projects by the ministry over lack of funding as FOCI tried to make the public believe not to talk of any breach to standard conditions of contract.

This is the minister under whose leadership the ministry is seeking to fund over N16 trillion road projects it inherited from the previous administration.

Senator Umahi spoke recently, while giving accounts of his stewardship since he assumed office at the Ministry’s headquarters in Abuja amidst cry of poor budgetary provisions for the construction of road infrastructure.

Though he said no new road projects would be entertain in the 2025 appropriation until most of the critical ongoing projects are completed and delivered to the use of Nigerian public.

Umahi revealed that the Tinubu-led administration inherited projects valued at N14.4 trillion and a N13 trillion funding gap as at May 2023.

According to him, reviewing the project based on current economic realities, the total fund required to complete them had reached over N16 trillion.

He added the old traditional method of funding highway projects is through the annual budgetary provision. Over the years, budget provisions seem to be inadequate to address the challenges of Highway Development.

According to him, “Due to the removal of fuel subsidy and the floating of the Naira, though it is a very sound economic decision of this administration, and considering the fact that some of the projects have lingered for between 5 to 18 years, consequently, the projects are being reviewed to match with current market realities.

“This position excludes all the new projects under the Renewed Hope Agenda and the four Legacy projects.

“Funding gap to complete all the inherited projects is about N13 trillion as at May, 2023 and will be more than N16 trillion when all projects are reviewed in line with current market realities”.

The ministry according to him, in a bid to address the funding gaps, evolved several alternative funding mechanisms, including the Presidential Infrastructure Development Fund (PIDF), Sovereign SUKUK issued by Debt Management Office (DMO), Road Tax Credit Scheme (NNPCL, NLNG, Dangote, BUA, MIN, Mainstream Energy Solutions Limited GZI Industries) and use of Multi-lateral loans, Public Private Partnership (PPP)/Highway Development Management Initiative (HDMI) and the newly established Renewed Hope Infrastructure Funding model.

Umahi further explained that 82 projects were approved under the SUKUK fund, with a total sum of N100 billion invested in road construction and rehabilitation in 2017, N100billion in 2018, N162.55 in 2020, N210.56 billion in 2021, for 2,812 km of road. Also, N110 billion was approved in 2022 and the approved 2023 SUKUK provision stood at N250 billion.

He noted also that the sum of N2.590 trillion was approved by the Federal Executive Council for funding of 65 Highway projects under the Phases I & Il of the NNPCL Funding. The projects were to cover a total of 6,358km, while the available funding for the projects up to year 2025 is N2.586trillion. “The reviewed total contract sum due to inflation is N5.288 trillion.

funding gap for the completion of both phase I &II is N2.702 trillion. To date, the total payment made by NNPCL is in the sum of N840 billion and total outstanding funding approved by FEC is N1.750 trillion. The projecst are spread across the six geopolitical zones of the country.

“Other major Companies like NLNG Limited, Dangote Industries Limited, BUA International Limited, MTN Nigeria Communications Plc, Mainstream Energy Solutions Limited and GZI Industries projects have embraced the Road Infrastructure Development & — Refurbishment Tax Credit Scheme programme. The funding exceeds the sum of N2.08trillion covering a length of 1,548km”, he said.

On the ongoing Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project , the minister said the project will proceed as planned despite the court cases challenging its implementation.

He said the present administration is committed to seeing the project through and that all necessary legal and procedural requirements have been met.

According to him, “We are paying compensation. We are following the corridor right of way. We are following the corridor that is legally allowed for the federal government,”

Not deterred by fireworks of criticisms targeted at him by contractors include their umbrella body, FOCI, Umahi insisted that not even bureaucracy or saboteurs can frustrated his mandate to deliver good roads to Nigerians.

Speaking on the backdrop of opposition to his policies from some powerful elements within the ministry at the early stage of assumption of office, Umahi has vowed that no lackluster attitudes inherent in the civil service circle would deter his determination to accomplish his mandate on road infrastructure segment of the Renewed Hope agenda of the current administration.

From initial antagonism to the concrete revolution, inhouse power play to the contracts’ gang-up and FOCI’s accusations of negative policies of gross projects termination, Senator Umahi is passing through stormy session and only time will tell how far he could go in manoeuvring the intrigue and shenanigans occasioned his different dimensions to actualize road infrastructure development.