₦airaland Forum

I heartily felicitate with fellow Nigerians on the occasion of our 60th Independence Anniversary.

While we celebrate the Diamond Jubilee Anniversary of our country as a sovereign nation, the occasion is also auspicious for a sober reflection on the progress that we have made, the challenges that we face and the future that we desire as a nation.

It is in this sense that I consider the theme for the 60th Independence anniversary, “Together”, as apt.

Indeed, patriotic Nigerians have ample reasons to celebrate the fact that in spite of the clear challenges that the differences in our tongues, modes of worship and other elements of our diversity pose to nationhood, we have remained Together.

Our national journey may have been tortuous, our progress slow and unsteady, and primordial fears and sentiments may occasionally cast dark clouds over our unity and threaten our resolve to stick together, but if we look at great nations throughout history, we would realise that all such experiences are common features of nation-building.

Some of us may not see the wood for the trees due to some unmet expectations. But a broad perspective of issues will strengthen rather than weaken our aspiration of building a great Nigeria.

Our commitment to the cause of building a nation in which none is oppressed and of which all is proud must therefore remain unshakable.

This cause fired the zeal of our founding fathers and inspired them to make the great sacrifices that they made to bequeath to us our independence.

This cause must remain a proud heritage for the current generation of Nigerians and a baton to pass to future generations.

We should not allow unnecessary magnification of our teething problems by some people to shake our faith in the great destiny of our country.

As has been said, democracy is a journey rather than a destination. National development too is always a work in progress that requires the patient and unconditional commitment of all patriots.

We value our democracy and the rights it confers on us as citizens of a democratic nation. However, the expression of these rights need not be a clog in the wheel of our national unity, peace and development.

Our democracy is a vehicle for the pursuit of our individual and collective aspirations. We all have roles to play to keep the vehicle roadworthy and fit for purpose.

On our part as the Legislature, we will continue to provide true representation to the Nigerian people and to strive to make their government work for them. In this regard, the ninth National Assembly is committed to having another look at our constitution, the grundnorm for our co-existence as a nation, with a view to making it a document of the Nigerian people.
Fellow Nigerians should take advantage of this opportunity by taking active part in the constitutional review process. The overall objective of the periodic ammendment of our laws is to make them keep pace with the changes that each epoch requires, strengthen the bond that keeps us together and to cement peace and progress in our beloved country.

I wish to salute the resilience of the Nigerian workers in the face of the challenges we face as a nation. Organised labour in particular deserves special commendation for the patriotism they exhibited in the management of the recent disagreement over certain policy decisions arising from the reform programme of the government. Such understanding between the government and the people is always required to move the nation forward.

Finally, as we celebrate our Independence Anniversary, permit me to remind us of the need for us all to continue to be conscious that the Coronavirus pandemic is still very much with us.

The Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 and our health workers at the frontline are working very hard to flatten the curve of the spread of the disease, so we as members of the public must not drop the ball by letting down our guards. Let us abide by the public health safety protocols to avert a second wave of the pandemic.

I wish you all Happy Celebrations!

As we mark the 60th Anniversary Day, the record-setting, mega roadways infrastructure development projects by the Buhari administration numbering up to 600 that are undergoing major upgradation or rehabilitation call for public attention and appreciation.


The size and magnitude of the road projects notwithstanding, the clamour by Nigerians for more motorable roads is not abating, and neither is the President Muhammadu Buhari Government’s commitment to delivering on an improved national road network, which it inherited at different stages of disrepair from previous administrations. When there is a will, as the adage goes, there will be a way or two.

Since 2015, the Buhari administration has done more than its predecessors to rehabilitate Federal Roads despite other competing infrastructural funding needs. For an Administration willed to funding numerous other critical national infrastructure projects aimed at economic self-reliance and increased domestic output, it is indeed commendable how the Buhari Administration devised economically sound fiscal strategies to fund the redevelopment of various Federal Highways, including those nearing completion.

A quality road network being the most critical component of a national multimodal transportation plan is the foundation of a thriving economy. Good roads link up the national socioeconomic arteries, centres and hubs. People move about and perform everyday activities, mostly by road. It is also by the road that people go to earn a living, farm, or access other transportation modals like rail, air, and water. Essential social services such as education, healthcare, hospitality, community integration, neighbourhood security, religious and private interactions are majorly accessed by roads. A quality road network is therefore the mainstay of any thriving economy.

Nigeria’s 108,000km of surfaced roads of which those categorised as Federal Roads make up 32,000km or 18 per cent had steadily deteriorated in the period preceding this administration through a combination of official neglect, a poor maintenance culture, and perhaps more fundamentally, the absence of a legal and policy framework for private sector participation in funding, management and maintenance of Federal Highways.

Despite the recent drop in revenues due to lower oil prices and the aftershock of the Covid-19 shutdown, Nigeria’s economic potentials are enormous. Although the Buhari Administration is mindful of the pains the average Nigerian is passing through due to the coronavirus-induced recession, it has nonetheless been resolute in continuing with its economic recovery plans which have as a key component the rebuilding of national infrastructures.

It is therefore highly commendable the ceaseless fiscal and administrative stimulus this Administration puts into the timely completion of major roads and bridges across the six geopolitical zones of the country to stimulate economic growth.

The Administration is achieving this objective through the establishment of the Presidential Infrastructure Development Fund (PIDF), in 2018, to fast-track the completion of critical infrastructure projects. In addition, President Buhari, in January 2019, signed Executive Order 7 (the “Companies Income Tax Road Infrastructure Development and Refurbishment Investment Tax Credit Scheme) which is aimed at attracting PPP financing for road construction across Nigeria. It was through this laudable scheme that infrastructural funding is sourced from the Sukuk Bond.

Some of the 600 on-going federal road projects whose completion will immediately impact economic activities include the Apapa-Oshodi-Oworonshoki Expressway, which is being reconstructed as a concrete road, for the first time since it was built 40 years ago. This vital economic gateway can be likened to the nation’s spinal cord, the backbone of our import and export business. When this road is choked and vehicular traffic snarls in gridlock, as it often is, the economy of Nigeria, and indeed the entire West African region, is effectively paralysed. The Buhari Administration is committed to reconstructing the Expressway to benefit national and regional economic development. Both the Apapa-Oshodi-Oworonshoki Expressway and the Bodo-Bonny Bridges and Road, (which was conceived in the 1980s, but actual construction started in 2017), were executed under the Executive Order 7 projects.

Other projects being funded under PIDF include the Second Niger Bridge. Main construction for this vital gateway into the South-South and South East regions started in 2018, and completion is scheduled for 2022. As it stands today, the construction company, Julius Berger is claiming 57 per cent completion. There is also the reconstruction of the 375km Abuja-Kaduna-Zaria-Kano Expressway and its transformation to a six-lane configuration; reconstruction of the Benin – Ofusu – Ore – Ajebandele – Shagamu Expressway; the Enugu-Port Harcourt Expressway, and the Kano-Maiduguri Expressways. The Loko-Oweto Bridge, linking Benue and Nasarawa States, an important interstate project started by the Goodluck Jonathan administration, is being completed by President Buhari.

In 2017, the Buhari Administration identified and marked out 63 roads across the country, including 44 Federal Highways. These roads which linked up trade, commerce, port, and agricultural centres across the six geopolitical zones of the country were classified under Critical Economic Routes and Agricultural Routes, and accorded budgetary priority.

The roads include the Apapa/Tincan Port, NNPC Depot (Atlas Cove) to Mile 2 Accessed Road, Apapa-Oshodi Road, Third Mainland Bridge, Apapa/Tincan Island Port-NNPC Depot Access Road, Benin-Ofosu-Ore Ajebandele-Shagamu Road, Obajana Junction-Benin Road Phase 2: (Sections i-iv), Sapele-Ewu Road Sections 1&11, Second Niger Bridge, Onitsha-Enugu Expressway (Amansea-Enugu State Border), Yenegoa Road Junction-Kolo-Otueke-Bayelsa Palm and Bodo-Bonny Road with Bridge.

Included are the Abuja-Lokoja Road Sections i&iv; Suleja-Minna Road Section 11; Kaduna Eastern Bypass; Kano-Maiduguri Road Section 1-1V; Hadejia-Nguru-Gashua-Bayamari Road and Kano Western Bypass; Odukpani-Itu-(Spur Ididep-Itam)-Ikot Ekpene Federal Highway Sections 1&11; Ikom Bridge; Enugu-Port Harcourt Dual Carriageway Sections i-iv; Calabar-Ugep-Katsina-Ala Road; Vandeikya-Obudu-Obudu Cattle Ranch Road; Oshegbudu-Oweto Road; Oju/Loko-Oweto Bridge with approach roads; and the Nassarawa-Loko Road.

Others are the Kano-Katsina Road (Phase 1: Kano Town at Dawanau Roundabout to Katsina State Border); Sokoto-Tambuwal-Jega-Yauri Road; Ilorin-Jebba-Mokwa-Bokani Road; Ilorin-Kabba-Obajana Road (Sections 1&11); Ibadan-Ilorin Road, Section11 (Oyo-Ogbomosho); Lagos-Shagamu-Ibadan Dual Carriageway, Sections 1&11, and Lagos-Otta Road.

Others are the Zaria-Kano Road, Abuja-Lokoja Road (Sections i-iv), Ilorin-Jebba-Bokani Road, Ibadan-Ilorin Road (Sections `1&11), Lagos-Shagamu-Ibadan Road (Sections1&11), Benin-Ofosu-Ore-Ajebandele-Shagamu Road, and Obajana-Benin Road (Sections i-iv).

The Kaduna-Zaria Road, Otukpo Township Road, Kaduna-Katsina Road, Onitsha-Enugu Road (Section 1&11), Enugu-Port Harcourt Road (Sections i-iv), Calabar-Odukpani-Itu Road (Section 1), Calabar-Ugep-Katsina-Ala Road (Sections 1&11), Alesi-Ugup (Iyamoyung-Ugup) Road, Ogoja(Mbok Junction) Abuochichie Road, Kano-Maiduguri Road(Sections i-v), among others, were also among those listed. There is no doubt the completion of the reconstruction of these roads will heighten the tempo of national economic recovery and achieve one of the cardinal objectives of the Muhammadu Buhari Administration.

With a government determined to provide smooth and motorable roads, it is the hope that we will achieve a mitigation of the wear and tear of vehicles, enhance the country’s socio-economic development, improve road safety, ensure smooth traffic, reduce travel time and traffic congestion, make for better connectivity in and around the federation.

The movement of people and goods is also improving substantially, even if gradually.

Shehu is Senior Special Assistant to the President, Media and Publicity.

President Muhammadu Buhari says he will address the nation via a televised broadcast at 7am to mark the independence day celebration.

Earlier on Wednesday, Femi Adesina, presidential spokesman, had issued a statement which noted that the president would address Nigerians live from the Eagle Square, Abuja, on October 1.

However, in a fresh statement, Adesina asked Nigerians to disregard the previous information as there will no longer be an open-air live address by the president.

He added that the president will proceed to the Eagle Square to review the Independence anniversary at 10am.

“As part of activities commemorating the 60th Independence anniversary of the country, President Muhammadu Buhari will broadcast to the nation on Thursday, October 1, 2020, at 7 am,” Adesina said.

“All television, radio and other electronic media outlets are enjoined to hook up to network services of the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) and the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN) respectively for the address.

“The President will, thereafter, proceed to the Eagle Square, Abuja to review the anniversary parade and participate in other activities beginning at 10 am, which will be covered live by major television and radio stations.

“This updated statement supersedes our earlier one indicating an open-air live presidential address on October 1.”

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Lagos State has cancelled the planned parade for the Independence Day celebration.

A statement from Lagos Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Gbenga Omotoso, also noted other activities would involve the gathering of more than 50 people were cancelled.

Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu urged Lagosians not to relax their vigilance against COVID-19.

The statement reads: “The Lagos State Government opted for a low key celebration of the 60th Independence Anniversary due to the ravaging effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, which is still with us.

“Governor Sanwo-Olu directed that the planned parade and other activities that involve the gathering of more than 50 people should be cancelled.

“He congratulates Lagosians on this auspicious occasion and strongly advises that they should celebrate quietly at home and pray for the country.

“They should also observe the COVID-19 protocols, including wearing of face masks to protect themselves and their loved ones.

“The Governor urges Lagosians not to relax their vigilance against COVID-19 so as not to reverse the gains that the state has made in fighting the disease.

“They are to keep embracing physical distancing and washing of hands with soap and water. Anybody who feels unwell should stay indoors and contact health authorities.

“The police and other security agencies have been directed to ensure that nobody flouts these directives in the interest of all of us, especially now that the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) is warning that a second wave of the deadly disease could occur.”

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Barely 48 hours when some members of dreaded Boko Haram ambushed convoy of Governor Babagana Umara Zulum along Cross Kauwa-Baga road in Borno state leaving over 30 people dead including 10 policemen and 4 soldiers, another set of insurgents laid ambush along Monguno- Maiduguri axis and attacked the returning convoy on Sunday evening.

Monguno is north and about 80km drive to Maiduguri, the town hosted thousands of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) mostly from Marte, Baga, Kukawa, Dikwa and other surrounding Local Government Areas.

Sources said, the attack led to the shooting of a back tyre of the vehicle/bus conveying Journalists attached to the governor, but the driver manuveared and drove the vehicle on the flat wheel to escape the scene.

Although, details were sketchy at press time, one of the occupants/Journalist in the affected bus who did not want his name mentioned confirmed to our correspondent that the convoy ran into another Boko Haram ambush about 50km away to Maiduguri.

Unfortunately, the Journalist cell phone lines went off due to poor network, but investigation revealed that no casualty recorded in the latest Sunday ambush.

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