Strike: Umahi appeals to PENGASSAN to call off industrial actions
4 min read
…Challenges Okengwu, CEO of Winhome on $250m investments claims along coastal highway
By Chris Ochayi
The Minister of Works, Engr. David Umahi has called on the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, PENGASSAN, to call off the ongoing industrial actions in the interest of the nation.
Engr. Umahi made the plea during the inspection tour of sections I & II of Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway in Lagos State, South West geo-political zone.
He appealed to the leadership of PENGASSAN to put the nation first and end the strike action over their disagreement with Dangote Group.
The Minister urged the union to allow God’s wisdom to prevail in the efforts to resolve the matter, noting that such action would have a negative impact on the rebounding economy
The Minister was accompanied on the inspection visit by a public affairs analyst and spokesperson to the 2019 Atiku presidential campaign organization Segun Sowunmi, the Surveyor-General of the Federation, Adeyemi Adebomehin, the Director Highway Bridges and Design, Engr. Musa Saidu and the Federal Controller of Works,Engr. Kesha as well as some Civil Society groups.
He noted that the essence of his inspection visit to Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway with important personalities across party lines was to give them the latitude to evaluate the quality and progress of work and appreciate what the President is doing in the works sector, so as to tell the story whether the projects are great investments for the future of Nigeria or the projects are not profitable.
He explained further that the visit was to also reverify the evaluation of the additional work of the contractor handling the project, Hitech Construction Company Ltd as compiled by the Department of Roads and Bridges of the Federal Ministry of Works.
He commended the very highly pace and quality of work by the contractor.
Unah attributed the success of the project and the solution proffered to some technical problems encountered in some sections of the project to excellence in performance and extraordinary commitment to national development by the contractor, noting that Hitech is set to build Nigeria’s biggest flyovers at the connecting point between sections I & II of Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway to resolve traffic conflicts along the highway.
He urged members of the public not to listen to the antics and sensations of some content creators who, for lack of knowledge or deliberate mischief, had reported that the shoulders of the Coastal Highway project not yet protected amounted to construction failure.
Umahi, while reacting to the false claims and unabated falsehood leveled against the Federal Government by one Stella Okengwu who purports to be Winhome CEO, challenged her to show evidence of investment on the land she claimed to have purchased in 2022 at the total cost of N50m and to show any proof of approval to develop such land let alone investing US$250m.
He noted that the Lagos State government had revoked the land to give the right way to the federal government. He further challenged the said diaspora investor to disclose where the said money was invested on if not a rickety gate that was erected on the land for which the federal government had offered her a monetary compensation.
He urged the self acclaimed investor to without further delay declare the US $250m he claimed to have collected from the diaspora investors or submit herself to investigation by Nigeria’s anti-graft agencies.
The Civil Societies group who had participated in a protest against the federal government on behalf of the said CE0 of Winhome also spoke to condemn and denounce the false claims of the woman.
In his comment after the project inspection, the ex-while spokesperson to Atiku presidential campaign organization described the work done by Hitech as a masterpiece and praised the vision of Mr. President in building the Renewed Hope legacy road projects.
He described the project as a desirable roadmap to the transformation of Nigeria’s economic landscape. He charged Nigerians to look beyond politics and support any government programme that would guarantee the future of the citizenry.
He said that Mr. President is building consensus around national development, and that as opposition,he was ready to converse on behalf of Nigerians. He noted that a takeaway conversation is that a nation at 65 must be in a hurry to get deserving infrastructural linkages like other advanced nations of the world.
Others who spoke on the method statements of the project being inspected included: the Managing Director of Hitech Construction Company Ltd,Mr. Dany Abboud, the Director Highway Bridge and Design and the Federal Controller of Works.
