BY MAYOWA SAMUEL
The Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola has disclosed that the construction of the Second Niger Bridge is completed.
Fashola made the disclosure on Wednesday in Abuja at the unveiling of the President Muhammadu Buhari’s scorecard series (2015-2023).
He stated that the only factor delaying the commissioning of the road is the construction of the link road which the recent surge of flooding has impeded.
He said, “I can confirm that the second Niger Bridge itself is finished. People can walk through the bridge now unimpeded. What remains is the four-kilometer link road on the Asaba side.
“Right now, our dredger is in place, we have to rebuild the road by reclaiming sand, the recent surge of flood has slowed us down. On the Onitsha side, there is a 7 kilometer road that links the bridge and the Onitsha-Owerri interchange,” the minister disclosed.
He added that, “The first thing we did when we came into power was we expanded our budget on road infrastructure, sought alternative sources of funding through SUKUK, Infrastructure Tax Credit Scheme.”
Listing the achievements of his ministry, Fashola said 12 road projects covering about 896km have been completed, commissioned and handed over to their communities in the season of completion and impact.
He also said the government is executing 83 road rehabilitation projects in federal tertiary institutions across the country with 66 projects completed and 46 commissioned.
