2012 Budget: President Requests for N161.1 Billion Extra in Order for Fuel to Flow During Xmas!

It’s December, 2012 and the last has definitely not been heard about the fuel subsidy issue. In the latest development, President Goodluck Jonathan has asked the National Assembly to approve the sum of N161.1 billion supplementary budget for 2012.
This was contained in a letter addressed to the Senate President, David Mark; President Jonathan said the sum is meant for fuel subsidy. He explained that as part of the 2012 Budget Framework, a provision of N88O.1 billion was appropriated for payment of fuel subsidy for 2012.
However he stated that following the forensic audit carried out, the provision of fuel subsidy in the 2012 budget was under estimated. President Jonathan stated that in order to accommodate the outstanding arrears resulting from the forensic audit exercise and payment for the remaining period of the year 2012, the additional sum is required.
He then asked lawmakers to speedily approve his request to help maintain a steady flow of fuel during the festive season. Maybe the president is trying to prove a point, since most Nigerians are calling that the full subsidy be returned.
InformationNigeria.org

Cold War Brews Between President Jonathan, VP Sambo

Muhammadu Buhari, Ibrahim Babangida, Gambo Jimeta and VP Namadi Sambo

By SaharaReporters, New York

A cold war brewing between President Goodluck Jonathan and Vice President Namadi Sambo came out in the open last weekend as the two political figures attended two different events with their political allies. Mr. Jonathan was in Yenagoa, the capital of Bayelsa State, to bury his brother, Meni, while Vice President Sambo was in Kaduna to give his two daughters, Aisha and Huwaila, out in marriage.

A top official of the Peoples Democratic Party told SaharaReporters that many members of the party were baffled that the president fixed the burial of his brother on the same day that his vice president had set for his two daughters’ marriage.
SaharaReporters learnt that Mr. Sambo’s daughters’ wedding had been scheduled months ago. “The president knew about the wedding and received his invitation long before his brother died on November 20,” said our source, adding that First Lady Patience Jonathan had been tapped to be “Mother of the Day” at the nuptials.

Several sources disclosed that the relationship between the President and the Vice President started to deteriorate when Sambo received reliable indications that Mr. Jonathan was determined to run for another term in office. The prospect of the president’s going for a second term has alarmed Northern political figures, among them the vice president, who had been calculating ways of retaking Nigeria’s highest political office.
“We know that some northern elders have been putting pressure on Vice President Sambo to position himself to challenge the president,” said a source close to Mr. Jonathan.

Other sources in Aso Rock told us that President Jonathan was well aware that Mr. Sambo is exploring options for running for the presidency in 2015. “He has been trying to raise his profile and rally political heavyweights and operatives to his corner,” said a Jonathan associate. The source accused the VP of “trying to flex his political muscles, but he should know that, even if Mr. President decides not to run, he [the president] will still have a say in who succeeds him.”
One of Mr. Jonathan’s men said that they came close to declaring war “after Vice President Sambo selected a powerful delegation and went with them to pay a condolence visit to Gen. Muhammadu Buhari on the loss of his daughter.”

A political observer described the scenes in Yenagoa and Kaduna last weekend as resembling “a realignment of political forces around President Jonathan and Vice President Sambo.” Those who mourned with Mr. Jonathan in Yenagoa included Senate President David Mark, who also has presidential ambitions, as well as numerous Nollywood players. On the other hand, such personalities as Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida, Muhammadu Buhari and several Northern political figures, traditional rulers and business executives attended the vice president’s more festive event.

A source close to the vice president disclosed that Mr. Jonathan was in a precarious position. “He is waging an ongoing political war against [former President Olusegun] Obasanjo,” said the source.
A confidant of President Jonathan’s admitted that members of the president’s camp were angry at Mr. Obasanjo for trying to remotely control the ruling party long after his exit from power. The People Democratic Party recently stated that there was no plan to reconcile the president and Mr. Obasanjo.
On his part, Mr. Obasanjo has said in private and public forums that President Jonathan is bound to leave in 2015. The former president’s statement is at odds with Aso Rocks’ strategy of leaving Mr. Jonathan’s opponents guessing as to his next plans.
 

Retired Army General Oluwole Rotimi's Wife Kidnapped In Ibadan

Gen. Oluwole Rotimi (rtd)

The wife of retired General, Oluwole Rotimi, has been kidnapped by unknown gunmen in Ibadan, capital of Oyo state in Western Nigeria. Coming a day after the kidnap of Professor Kamene Okonjo, the mother of Nigeria’s finance minister, underscores the great insecurity in Nigeria.
According to reports,Titi Rotimi was kidnapped around 6:30 pm on Monday in front of her company, AOK Logistics Limited, located on Old Ife Road in Ibadan.
She was said to have been abducted by four armed men while she was leaving her office at the close of work.
The News Agency of Nigeria said case, which was reported at Egbeda Police Station, had been transferred to the state Criminal Investigation Department, Iyaganku, Ibadan.
The spokesman of the Oyo State Police Command, DSP Ayodele Lanade, who confirmed the incident, said the victim was driving away in her black Mercedes Benz car when she was blocked.
“According to the reports we gathered, two security men attached to her company removed the barricade on the gate for her car to drive out of the office complex.
“In the process, two armed men approached and ordered the driver to stop the car at gun point.
“A green Nissan Primera suddenly reversed and blocked her car while she was ordered to get into the Nissan car.
“ The manner of abduction was strange when compared to similar cases of kidnapping.
“We found out that there is a rift between the woman and her workers over three months salary which led to agitation by the aggrieved workers,’’ he said.
The police spokesman, however, said that no ransom demand had been presented while no arrest had been made.
Brigadier Rotimi was a former governor of Western Nigeria during the military rule.
Saharareporters.com

Kidnappers Take-over Delta State, Kill Soldiers, Abduct Setraco Staff

Militants in the Delta region

By SaharaReporters, New York

The much talked about and well-publicized “Peace and Security” agenda of the Delta state governor, Emmanuel Uduaghan, has suffered a major setback as kidnappers continue a reign of terror in the oil rich state.
Barely three days after the brazen abduction of the mother of Nigeria’s Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, in Ogwashi-Uku, Aniocha South local government area, kidnappers stormed Ughelli this morning, snatching an expatriate staff of Setraco Construction Company and killing a military official attached to the company.
It was a show of force between the armed kidnappers and the military attache at Setraco, the construction company in charge of the East-West Road and the Ughelli Township dualized road.  Both sides engaged in a gun battle beginning at about 8a.m. on the Ekuigbo axis of Ughelli Township Road following the abduction of the staff member.
Eyewitnesses told our reporter that the soldier failed to repel the gunmen, who shot him in the leg before seizing the staff member.
He was rushed to the Ughelli General Hospital but was confirmed dead on arrival.
The incident has brought to a halt all construction work at the company on the East-West and Ughelli Township roads.
Military check points around the Ughelli axis, especially at Ekrerhavwe junction, have been increased and put on high alert as cars coming from Agbarho and from Beta glass areas are compelled to undergo a thorough search.
It would be recalled that on November 27, at Gbarigolor Community in Ughelli South Local Government Area of the state, two Lebanese and a Nigerian were kidnapped after their abductors engaged the military personnel and the local vigilante group in a shootout which left a staff of Setraco, Mr. Joseph Akpudi, dead.
The company, however, denied that the kidnapped persons are on its staff, claiming they belonged to an affiliate known as “Building Technology” which is presently working under Setraco from where they were whisked away during work time.
As of the time of filing in this report, all attempts to speak with the management of the company proved abortive.  When contacted, the Delta State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), DSP Charles Muka, said he had not been briefed on the matter.

FORBES – The 20 Youngest Power Women In Africa 2012

by Kingsley Iweka

For the first time in history, the African Union voted an African woman to its helm. Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, South Africa‘s Minister of Home Affairs and a medical doctor, will lead and usher the 54-nation organization into a new era of possibilities for the continent. In her keynote address honoring her as the first female chair of the African Union, Dlamini-Zuma said: “African women make up over fifty percent of the continent, and let’s not forget that they produce the other fifty percent–men.”
Here are the 20 Youngest Power Women in Africa for 2012 according to Forbes.com, all under age 45, shaping the narrative of the continent’s rising:
1. Leymah Gbowee, Liberia, Peace and Women’s Rights Activist.
The peace activist was one of three female recipients who were awarded the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize “for non-violent struggle for the safety of women and for women’s rights to full participation in peace-building work.” Gbowee helped organize and lead the Liberian Mass Action for Peace, an alliance of Christian and Muslim women, in public protest during Liberia’s tumultuous times. Now, through her organization Women Peace and Security Network Africa, Gbowee trains and empowers women in Africa to bring peace to their own countries. Gbowee is a recipient of multiple awards including the Blue Ribbon Peace Award from Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School, Gruber Prize for Women’s Rights, the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award, the Medal for Justice from New York’s John Jay College of Criminal Justice and the Women’s eNews Leaders For the 21st Century Award.
2. Cina Lawson, Togo, Minister of Post and Telecommunications, Togo.
Lawson is currently the Minister of Post and Telecommunications of Togo. Prior to her appointment, Lawson was a Manager of Corporate Strategy and Business Development at the France Telecom/Orange Group in New York City and Alcatel-Lucent in Paris. Lawson began her career in telecommunications at the World Bank in Washington DC where she focused on regulatory reforms for developing nations. She is a graduate of Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government and the Institut d’Etudes Politiques de Paris and was named a 2012 Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum.
3. Juliana Rotich, Kenya, Co-Founder Ushahidi.
Rotich is Co-Founder and Executive Director of Ushahidi, a Nairobi-based tech company that specializes in developing free and open source software that aggregates and curates crisis data on a real-time basis and collates the data into live, interactive maps. She was named one of the “Top 100 Women” by the Guardian newspaper, “Top 2 Women” in Technology and “Social Entrepreneur of the Year” in 2011 by The World Economic Forum. Rotich is a technologist and a TED Senior Fellow.
4. Patience Mthunzi, PhD. South Africa, Senior Scientist, CSIR.
Born in Orlando West, Soweto, Dr. Mthunzi is currently South Africa’s only Senior Scientist for the Biophotonics Research Group within the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) National Laser Center in biophotonics – a field of study that enables microscopic study of biological molecules, cells and tissue using laser. Unable to study biophotonics in South Africa, she became the first South African PhD student at the School of Physics and Astronomy of the University of St Andrews in Scotland. Dr. Mthunzi was recently awarded one of the country’s highest orders, the Order of Mapungubwe, for her contribution in the field of biophotonics.
5. Maud Chifamba, Zimbabwe, 14-year old University Accounting Student.
At 14-years old, Chifamba made history this year when she became the youngest student (male or female) in Zimbabwe and possibly the whole of Southern Africa to enroll at university. The young genius was admitted to theUniversity of Zimbabwe where she will study towards a Bachelor of Accountancy Honors Degree. An orphan, Chifamba’s mother passed away last December, days after she sat for her final exams, and her father nine years ago when she was five years old. Despite this and abject poverty (her two brothers were unable to pay her fees for regular school), Chifamba home schooled herself and broke academic records earning a four-year scholarship of nearly USD$10,000.
6. Florence Iwegbue, Nigeria, Attorney & Co-Founder, LiveWello.
A life-changing event, the diagnosis of her son with Autism gave birth to LiveWello™, social network targeted at health. A U.K-trained attorney, Iwegbue and her physician husband, a self-taught software developer, built LiveWello to support their Autistic son’s health while harnessing the best elements of their African culture: village life. By building a health app that was social in nature, they were able to collaborate with their son’s health providers, their health coaches and the rest of their family back home in Africa, to collectively manage his health. Now Iwegbue is helping other people manage their own health with the social network app she built.
7. Lisa Opoku Busumbru, Ghana, Chief Operating Officer, Goldman Sachs.
US-based Black Enterprise magazine named the Wall Street executive one of its 2012 “40 Rising Stars Under 40″ and one of “75 Most Powerful Women in Business” for 2010. She is the Chief Operating Officer for Goldman Sachs‘ securities division for the Asia Pacific region. Opoku Busumbru earned a Bachelor of Arts degree with high honors in Sociology from the University of Minnesota in 1993 and a Juris Doctorate from Harvard Law School in 1996.
8. Leila Lopes, Angola, 2012 Miss Universe.
On September 12, 2011, Lopes was crowned Miss Universe, becoming the first Angolan woman to win the position, the fourth African to win the title (Miss South Africa took the title in 1978, Miss Namibia won in 1992, Miss Botswana won in 1999) and the second Black African woman to win following Mpule Kwelagobe from Botswana in 1999. As the reigning Miss Universe, Lopes used the platform for advocacy for HIV and AIDS patients worldwide.
9. Isha Sesay, Sierra Leone, News Anchor & Journalist, CNN .
Sesay reports for “African Voices” and “ Inside Africa“, CNN International’s award-winning, weekly program that covers political, economic, cultural and social trends in Africa. Sesay is also an anchor on CNN International and a contributor to CNN’s Anderson Cooper 360 and HLN’s nightly news show “Evening Express.”
10. Rainatou Sow, Guinea, Women’s Right Activist, Founder & Executive Director, Make Every Woman Count.

Originally from the West African country of Guinea, Rai is a human rights and social justice advocate and women’s rights activist. Founded  in December 2010, two months after the declaration of the “African Women’s Decade” by the African Union, “Make Every Woman Count” is a U.K-based non-profit organization that monitors women’s rights in every African country. The organization publishes an annual report as an audit of the status and conditions of women in each African country. Rai was awarded the “Most Inspirational Woman of the Year 2012″ by Women4Africa.
11. Biola Alabi, Nigeria, Managing Director, MNET Africa.
As Managing Director for multi-national cable and satellite content company, MNET Africa, Alabi is one of the most powerful women in African media. Named a 2012 Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum, she has been at the forefront of the expansion of the AfricaMagic channels brand across the continent. In 2010 she served as a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Agenda Council on the Future of Entertainment.
12. Lorna Rutto, Kenya, Sustainable Living and Green Technology Entrepreneur, Ecopost.
Rutto is the founder of Ecopost whose vision is “To Transform Africa’s Waste into Wealth.” Her Nairobi-based company, Ecopost, converts consumer plastic into durable, easy to use and environmentally friendly plastic lumber, an eco-friendly alternative to timber. Rutto is the 2011 Sub-Saharan Africa Cartier Laureate. She also won the 2010 Bid Network Nature Challenge Award, 2010 SEED Award and the 2009 Enablis Business Award.
13. Yolanda Sangweni, South Africa, Senior Editor/Producer, ESSENCE.com.
Born to a South African freedom fighter mother, who fled from the apartheid regime to the United States when Sangweni was a small child and lived in Harlem during her formative years, she is Senior Editor at ESSENCE.com, one of the leading publications for Black women in the United States. Sangweni is also co-founder of AfriPOP!, an online magazine focusing on contemporary African youth culture, music, fashion and film from an Afropolitan perspective. Sangweni worked as a Features editor at TRACE Magazine and contributing writer for “O: The Oprah Magazine” (South Africa), Glamour, Harper’s Bazaar, Arise Magazine, and Time Out New York covering music, fashion and culture.
14. Danai Gurira, Zimbabwe, Actress & Writer.
One of the lead characters on the popular HBO show, “The Walking Dead,” based on the popular American comic book of the same name, now currently in its third season, Gurira plays Michonne, a fearless woman warrior. A graduate of New York University’s prestigious Tisch School of the Arts, Gurira has guest starred on “Law & Order: Criminal Intent”, “Life on Mars”, “Lie to Me” and had a recurring role on “Treme” on HBO. Her movie roles include The “Visitor,” “Restless City” and “MaGeorge.” A recipient of the Obie Award, Outer Critics Circle Award, and Helen Hayes Award for Best Lead Actress for an off-Broadway play, Gurira recently won the 2012 Whiting Award for USD$50,000, bestowed annually to 10 rising stars.
15. Eunice Cofie, Ghana, Founder & Chief Cosmetic Chemist, Nuekie.
A former Miss Black Florida USA, Cofie is the President and Chief Cosmetic Chemist of Nuekie – an ethnic dermatology company.  She was also featured in Scientific American as “What a Scientist Looks Like.” Cofie was recognized by the Governor of Florida and the Florida Commission on the Status of Women with the prestigious Florida Achievement Award for her commitment to improving the lives of women and families in her community. Cofie was named by the Tallahassee Democrat newspaper as one of the “25 Women You Need to Know in Tallahassee” and a 2012 Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum
16. Marieme Jamme, Senegal, Social Entrepreneur, Technologist & CEO, SpotOne Global Solutions.
Senegalese-born Marieme Jamme is London-based CEO of SpotOne Global Solutions, a UK-based company that helps IT organizations establish a global footprint in Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia. CNN named Jamme one of Top Ten African Tech Voices to follow on Twitter. Jamme is also a co-founder of Africa Gathering, the first global platform where entrepreneurs and experts meet and share ideas about development in Africa. A prolific speaker, particularly on Africa, Jamme is also the organizer of TEDx Accra and Dakar.

17. Jepchumba, Kenya, Digital Content Creator, Cultural Curator, African Digital Art.
Jepchumba is the Founder and Creative Director of African Digital Art, a platform for innovation and inspiration which is dedicated to African digital media. Originally from Kenya, but based in Cape Town, South Africa, Jepchumba travels the world to share her views on African art and technology at popular conferences including South by Southwest (SXSW) in Austin, Texas and most recently at TedxEuston in England.
18. Redi Tlhabi, South Africa, Journalist, Broadcaster & Author.
She hosts the “Redi Tlhabi Show” on Talk Radio 702and 567 Cape Talk. She has interviewed prominent newsmakers including Nelson Mandela, South African President Jacob Zuma, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Archbishop Desmond Tutu. Tlhabi is also the producer of a much-talked about documentary on the former South African President Thabo Mbeki. She is also a columnist for theSunday Times newspaper and author of Endings and Beginnings: A Story of Healing, a book based on her childhood experiences. The popular host has a new talkshow on Al Jazeera English television channel that will focus on politics, culture, music, health and science.

19. Swaady Martin-Leke, Ivory Coast, Entrepreneur & Founder, Yswara.
The former high-ranking General Electric executive left her job in 2011 to launch Yswara, a luxury brand committed to offering the best African teas and cultural experiences. The Yswara collection of teas include “African Queen Health Teas”, “Seven Wonders of Africa” and “Kingdoms of Africa”. Yswaraopened its flagship store in Johannesburg and two more are planned for Cape Town and Nigeria. Swaady is a member of the invite-only African Leadership Network which one of the leading organizations of young, dynamic and influential leaders in Africa.
20. Jacqueline Chimhanzi, PhD. Zimbabwe, Corporate Executive.
Dr Jacqueline Chimhanzi is Senior Strategist with the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC), a leading development finance institute on the African continent. Prior to that, she was Lead: Africa Desk with Deloitte South Africa. She is a Fellow of the highly competitive pan-African Arch-Bishop Desmond Tutu Leadership Program run by the African Leadership Institute (AfLI) at Oxford University and is also a founding member of New Faces New Voices, under the patronage of Mrs Graca Machel committed to widening financial access for African women entrepreneurs. In 2010, she appeared on South Africa Destiny Magazine’s list: “The Power of 40” and in 2012 was part of a group of “esteemed Africa watchers” invited to submit their views on Africa to the leading journal Development for a special Africa-focused edition, Africa Strategies for Transformation.
CP-Africa

Onolememen blames past administrations for deplorable state of roads

 

Minister of Works Arc. Mike Onolememen says Works past administrations are to blame for deplorable state of roads in Nigeria. The minister spoke on Friday at the Academy of Entrepreneurial Studies, AES, Excellence Club 3rd Annual CEO’s Dinner/Awards Night in Lagos. The minister said the poor state of the roads is inimical to the nation’s development, adding that the development of societies like America is due to the success in the management of its roads. He stressed the need for “Attitudinal change in management and financing of roads in Nigeria is needed to enhance development in our country,” and greater investments in the construction and maintenance of good road network to enhance the nation’s economy. To achieve the transformation agenda of the government and for Nigeria to be among the top 20 economies of the world by 2020, investments in road infrastructure are needed, the minister add.
 
Read full text below
THE TRANSFORMATION AGENDA IN THE FEDERAL MINISTRY OF WORKS:
A PAPER DELIVERED BY ARC. MIKE ONOLEMEMEN, FNIA, FNIM, FNMGS
AT THE AES EXCELLENCE CLUB MONTHLY BUSINESS LUNCHEON ON DECEMBER 7, 2012 AT EKO HOTELS & SUITES, VICTORIA ISLAND, LAGOS
Protocol
It gives me great joy to be with you today to deliver a paper on “The Transformation Agenda in the Federal Ministry of Works”. Your choice of topic is no doubt deliberate and timely in view of the federal government’s new approach to the construction, rehabilitation and maintenance of road infrastructure under my leadership in line with the transformation agenda of Mr. President, Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, GCFR.
2. I have noticed the impressive membership of the AES Excellence Club which include seasoned administrators, and captains of industries, who have at different times, contributed to the social economic development of our dear country. I am also particularly glad to know that members of the Governing Board/Patrons are individuals who have distinguished themselves in various fields of endeavour. The fact that this august body stands for excellence, honesty, accountability, determination and patriotism, is further reassuring particularly when viewed from the determination of Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan’s Administration to instill values that will change the business as usual mentality of the polity and transform the country for the good of all.
Road Development and the Transformation Agenda
3. The importance of roads infrastructure to the economic well being of any nation cannot be over emphasised. The connection between good roads and economic well being of a nation was made many decades ago by no less a figure than Former President John Kennedy of the United States of America who stated, “America is having good roads not because America is rich, but America is rich because it has good roads”. Can we say the same of our dear country Nigeria today? The obvious answer is No!
4. We have come to this sorry state of affairs in the governance of our road sector because the leadership of our country in the past four decades failed to develop the right attitude like former President Kennedy of the United States of America to road development. Therefore Attitudinal Change in Management and Financing of Roads in Nigeria, is needed to transform road development in our country. And I dare say that the time for this attitudinal change in the road sector is NOW! A paradigm shift has become inevitable in the development of roads infrastructure in our country, judging by our recent experiences of the near-collapse of our roads infrastructure. We need to reclaim our National Road Network from its dilapidated state and once again elevate it to an enviable state where it can help to promote national economic growth and prosperity.
5. The purpose of encouraging attitudinal change in policy formulation, management and funding of the road sector is to promote the development of good roads that can truly serve as the economic arteries of the nation. Our country needs to make Strategic Investments in Roads Infrastructure if the objective of the Transformation Agenda of the Federal Government to be among the top 20 Economies in the World by the Year 2020 is to be realised. It can therefore be seen that the current leadership of the Ministry was confronted with a situation that required urgent and far-reaching changes and reforms especially in the areas of policy, management and financing.
6. A look at some of the statistics indicates that Nigeria has an uphill task ahead of her. Nigeria has a total of about 194,000 km of roads. Comparing this figure to those of the United States of America (6,506,204 km); India (4,109,593 km); China (3,806,800 km); Brazil (1,751868 km); Turkey (352,046 km); and South Africa (362,099 km), enables one to better appreciate the enormity of the challenge that we face as a Nation in the road sector. For Nigeria to be among the first 20 Economies in the World, our road infrastructure needs to grow from 194,000km to about 300,000km. This will require huge investments by both the three tiers of Government and the Private Sector. This kind of investments cannot be possible if there is no attitudinal change in the policy formulation, financing and management of roads infrastructure in our country.
7. In realisation of the above, the Federal Ministry of Works under my leadership, has pursued passionately the reform of road sector institutions in line with international best practice, as to be able to attract funding from the Private sector. We took this line of action in the Ministry because we truly believe that a paradigm shift is inevitable in the road sector if we are to develop additional 100,000km in about ten years. We need a shift in Institutional Structures that will lead to the creation of a National Roads Fund and a Federal Roads Authority by legislation; a shift in the funding mechanism of road projects, from Public Sector to Private Sector driven; And a Shift from the present Palliative regime in road development where only a paltry sum is devoted to road development to being BOLD in our approach, through the pooling together of a wide range of finances (Government Yearly Budgets, Multilateral Agencies Funding, 5% Petroleum Tax, IVT Charges, Private Sector Fund, Road Bonds, ROW Revenue, Toll Charges, etc.) into the National Road Fund for the ambitious development of roads infrastructure in Nigeria. Since the 1970s, Nigeria has not been able to embark on major road development programmes that would help to accelerate economic growth in our country, and bring the nation’s economy at par with emerging economies such as Brazil, South Africa, Turkey and India.
8. It is a well-known fact that we have had to contend with deplorable road network in the country for many years now due to lack of adequate investment in road infrastructure by successive governments to ensure the sustainable maintenance of our national road network. The challenge posed by the deplorable state of our road infrastructure has seriously impacted the cost of transportation of goods and services in our country.
9. Earlier efforts by Government to maintain, upgrade and/or modernize the existing highways to international standard did not yield the desired result. The reasons for this are not far-fetched; they include paltry budgetary provisions, poor project planning and design, poor supervision of works, road abuses, bureaucratic bottlenecks and lack of political will in the past to entrench institutional and legal frameworks that would transform the sector in line with international best practice.
Institutional Restructuring
10 At the inception of the President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan’s administration and on my assumption of duty as the Honourable Minister of Works, I identified a number of challenges facing road development in the country. These included:
· Inadequate Planning;
· Poor Design;
· Ineffective Supervision;
· Bureaucratic Project Management Structure;
· Lack of Strong Quality Assurance, and
· Inadequate Funding.
11. I moved quickly to address these challenges by restructuring the Ministry to provide the needed capacity through the decentralization of the bureaucratic project management structure which I inherited, for better delivery of road projects. Consequently, Mr. President approved the creation of six Zonal Directorates of Highways to better manage and supervise construction works on sites within the geopolitical zones. The administration also created the Department of Materials, Geotechnics & Quality Control, to carry out continuous assessment of materials with a view to ensuring that quality materials are being deployed on our road projects by Contractors. This has significantly enhanced the quality of works as well as better service delivery in the road sector.
12. Independent Zonal Monitoring Teams for the six geopolitical zones were constituted with membership drawn from the Private Sector to provide independent report on projects and activities in the zones. The Chairmen of these Zonal Monitoring Committees report directly to my office to ensure that uncensored and reliable information are passed on to my office, and thereby checkmate the excesses of any dubious staff in the handling of road infrastructure projects.
Strengthening of the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency
13. The Federal Roads Maintenance Agency is saddled with the responsibility of maintaining all federal roads in the country. As part of its rejuvenated programmes for road maintenance, the Agency has commenced its Preventive Maintenance and Road Surveillance Programmes on major highways. Six mobile laboratories were acquired for material testing and quality control to guide against sub-standard works.
14. The Federal Road Maintenance Agency (FERMA) recently acquired 38 new FP5 Bergkam Pothole Patches for the effective maintenance of roads nationwide. The trucks have been deployed to major highways in the six geo-political zones of the country. FERMA has also commenced cold asphalt production with a Cold Asphalt Production Base at Kuje in Abuja. The agency has increased the number of road rehabilitation and repairs across the country since the inception of the administration of President Goodluck Jonathan. With FERMA’s emergence as a modern Road Maintenance Outfit, the issue of potholes on our roads will soon be a thing of the past, as the Agency recently flagged off a programme that will eliminate potholes from the Nation’s major arterial roads.
Road Sector Reforms
15. By far the most important policy intervention that will impact positively on the road sector under my leadership, is the reforms we are carrying out in the road sector.
16. Prior to my assumption of office last year, earlier initiatives to reform the road sector were not accorded the needed attention. In view of the Federal Government’s inability to wholly construct, reconstruct, rehabilitate and/or maintain roads in the country due to the global economic recession and its attendant consequences to our environment, I set up a Road Sector Reform Committee, comprising international experts, professionally experienced and credible Nigerians in October 2011. The Committee painstakingly reviewed existing institutional frameworks and policies on road infrastructure development in our country. The Committee’s Report, among others, recommended the establishment of the National Roads Fund and the Federal Roads Authority, all to be guided by independent boards. These bodies, when constituted, would strengthen our resolve to drive road development in Nigeria through the Public Private Partnership (PPP) initiative and other funding models that are certainly global best practices in meeting road sector development funding challenges. The draft bills for the two bodies are currently being studied and reviewed before a formal presentation to the Federal Executive Council.
Benefits of the Reforms on Road Projects
17. Ladies and Gentlemen, it is pertinent to state that the ongoing transformation in the Federal Ministry of Works, has started to yield dividends which are obviously impacting on the socio-economic wellbeing of the people of this country. Works are currently ongoing in most of the road projects that were abandoned due to delayed and/or nonpayment of certificates prior to my assumption of duty. This is the result of our purposive interactions with the Contractors and our consistent efforts at ensuring that payments are made within available resources.
18. Specifically, some of the major roads on which the transformation agenda of the Federal Ministry of Works is progressively yielding desired results include:
1) The Benin-Ore-Shagamu Expressway
2) The dualisation of Abuja-Abaji-Lokoja road
3) The Kano-Maiduguri road Dualization
4) The Onitsha-Enugu Expressway
5) The Ibadan-Ilorin road Dualization
6) The Kano Western Bye-Pass/Flyover in Kano State
Bridges
7) The Loko-Oweto Bridge
8) The 2^nd Niger Bridge in Anambra/Delta States
9) The rehabilitation of Jebba Bridge in Kwara State, and
10) The Replacement of 8 No. Expansion Joints on the Third Mainland Bridge in Lagos State.
19. Two weeks ago, the Federal Executive Council approved the continuation of the Abuja-Lokoja road dualization to Benin City, to connect the dual carriageways of the North-East, North-West and North-Central zones to those of the South-East, South-South and the South-West zones. This will ensure that, for the first time, Nigerians will be able to drive on dual carriageways from any of the six geo-political zones to any of the other zones in an unbroken chain/network of dual carriageways. This will also truly ensure the transformation of road transportation in Nigeria, which is one of the cardinal objectives of Mr. President’s transformation agenda.
Recovery of Road Washouts
20. The threats of Washouts and Gully Erosion on the nation’s roads have become a recurring decimal in parts of the country. The Federal Government through the Federal Ministry of Works has, through its transformation programme, risen to the challenge with prompt reinstatement of affected roads in the past one year. Notable among them include -
(i) Gombe-Potiskum road Washout in Gombe State.
(ii) Auchi-Okene road Washout in Edo State.
(iii) Onitsha-Enugu road Washouts at Km 6, km 30 and km 35 in Anambra State, and
(iv) Sokoto-Illela road Washout in Sokoto State.
21. Most recently, the country witnessed an unprecedented flood which adversely impacted on some federal roads and bridges and ravaged communities where vehicles, houses and other properties as well as farmlands were submerged, and agricultural produce destroyed. In particular, the Lokoja-Abuja Highway was cut-off at three different locations. My Ministry rose to the occasion by creating temporary alternative routes for motorists who were stranded in the areas. We are currently working round the clock to accomplish the task of reconstructing failed sections of roads and collapsed bridges/culverts as mandated by Mr. President during his national broadcast on the flooding.
Projects Funding by Multi-Lateral Agencies
22. To address the challenges of funding road projects, the Road Sector Development Team Unit was upgraded to a full-fledged Department. It was strengthened and repositioned to meet contemporary needs, including soliciting and managing funds obtained from multi-lateral agencies for road development projects in the country.
The Ministry under by watch is collaborating well with the Africa Development Bank and the World Bank, and has been able to enhance access to finance for the rehabilitation of the following critical road projects:
i. Ikom-Mfum Road
ii. Abakaliki-Ogoja Junction road
iii. Enugu-Abakaliki road
iv. Ogoja Junction-Ikom road
The final procurement for the Mokwa-Bida road and Akure-Ilesha road respectively are currently ongoing.
Additionally, fourteen (14) roads are variously undergoing periodic maintenance under the road development programme through the collaboration between Federal Ministry of Works and the World Bank.
Public Private Partnership Initiative
23. I inherited the Public Private Partnership Unit with no performing project. In view of the urgent need to reposition the Unit to meet the funding challenges in the road sector in the country, it was upgraded to a full-fledged department. It is no longer news that government alone cannot fund road infrastructural projects with the annual budgetary provisions.
24. The pressure on the Federal Government to provide additional kilometres of roads to the network and rehabilitate existing ones is presumably high, considering that federal roads serve as major arteries to economic centres like sea ports, airports, petroleum depots and refineries, and connect various States and important cities/towns. The dual carriageways linking the six geo-political zones are also owned by the Federal Government, and a major priority of the Federal Ministry of Works is to ensure that the six geopolitical zones are connected by unbroken chain of dual carriageways in good and motorable condition all year round.
25. To sustain this increasing demand for good and sustainable road network, it has become pertinent to involve the private sector as it is now fashionable all over the world. It is also important to note that roads all over the world are fast becoming big businesses because of the demand to keep them in perfect condition all the time.
26. It is in this regards that the Federal Government through the Federal Ministry of Works has been working round the clock to produce a private sector driven road development programme in Nigeria. We have been engaging the organized private sector and the international community on the need for them to invest in Nigerian road development programme.
27. Late last year, the Federal Ministry of Works called for Expression of Interests from willing private sector investors in the concession of the following projects:
i) The 2^nd Niger Bridge linking Delta and Anambra States;
ii) Bridge Over River Niger at Nupeko, Niger State; and
iii) Expansion and Upgrading of Apakun-Murtala Mohammed International Airport road in Lagos State.
28. So far the responses have been very encouraging and the Federal Ministry of Works intends to deliver world-class road concessions on the above federal roads and bridges, among others.
Conclusion
29. Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen, you will appreciate therefore that change and reform have been very important components in our efforts to reposition the road sector since my assumption of duty. Indeed, we shall continue to make change and reform cardinal factors in our determination to foster a vibrant and performance based management environment, to drive road sector development in Nigeria.
30. The challenges of repositioning the Federal Ministry of Works with a view to providing good motorable roads in our country are enormous. I am, however, not deterred by the challenges but committed to ensuring that during my stewardship, there would not only be substantial evidence to show that development of road infrastructure can be executed in line with the Transformation Agenda of Mr. President, but to also ensure that efforts are institutionalized for the sustainable development of Nigeria’s road infrastructure.
31. Finally, I wish to assure all that we at the Federal Ministry of Works shall continue to work in ensuring that world-class roads infrastructure are developed in our country to help support real economic growth for the good of our people.
32. I thank you for your attention.
Arc. Mike Onolememen, fnia, fnim
Honourable Minister of Works
EsanNowNews

AES named Onolememen minister of the year

 

Hon Minister of works, Arc Mike Onolememen
flanked by Chairman of Academy for
Entrepreneurial Studies, AES, Dr Ausbeth Ajagu
and former Minister of Industries, Chief Nike
Akande during the AES annual dinner/awards
nite in Eko Hotel and Suites lagos last weekend
where Onolememen was honored as
'Minister of the Year'
EsanNow