Former Ebonyi State governor and currently Minister of Works, Dave Umahi, on Wednesday, stopped some road construction in the South-East region, pending the review of the existing and additional contracts.

Umahi gave the directive on Thursday in Enugu State during the inspection of some ongoing construction/rehabilitation of federal roads across states in the South-East.

The minister expressed dismay that four bridges and three kilometres of additional work were costing N15 billion.

“I have directed directors in the ministry to sit with the contractors and review it.

“I strongly believe that there is no way that the project will cost us more than three to four billion naira, and when a project is too expensive, and the budgeting process is very low, then contractors will remain on site for 10 to 15 years,” he said.

Some of the roads inspected included the Ozalla- Akpugo-Amangunze-Isu Onicha (Enugu-Onitsha) with a spur to Onunwere in Enugu State done by Arab Contractors and rehabilitation of Old Enugu- Onitsha road also done by Arab Contractors.

Others were the construction of the Nenwe-Nomeh-Mburubu -Nara road with a spur from Obeagu-Oduma road, Enugu State, Rehabilitation of Nsukka -Ikem, Eha Amufu – Nkalagu in Ebonyi State among others.

Umahi commended the quality of work done on some of the roads in Enugu, adding that he stopped certain payments until contractors, and the ministry reviewed the existing contracts and additional works.

The former Ebonyi governor said he stopped payment of RCC and Arab Contractors until they all sit down to review the cost of the projects and methods of construction.

He equally gave the contractor handling the Mmaku road seven days to return to the site to cover the binder course.

He also directed that the right-hand side of the Enugu-Onitsha expressway be done with concrete to save costs.

“I discovered something unprofessional where contractors put a binder course and leave it up to five to eight years, and within that period, the binder course fails.

“Henceforth, no contractor will leave the binder course for more than one month without covering it because the binder course admits water which affects subgrade.

“It is not healthy for contractors as they lose money for the equipment they are using to maintain the work,” he said.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the binder course is an intermediate, bitumen-bound aggregate layer placed between the base layer and the surface of an asphalt pavement.

The minister explained that Nigerian roads failed because of the bad asphalt placed on them as a result of adulterated bitumen imported into the country.

According to him, most of the roads are not failing because of sub-base or subgrade but fail because of bad asphalt placed on them.

Bluntguy:
South East roads appear to be the worst in the country. May Umahi succeed.

TemplarLandry:

Guyman01:

You are just too noisy and constituting nuisance on every post. Na una spoil Nairaland, must you occupy space on every thread without meaningful contributions?

Back to the topic, there has always been a deliberate policy to ensure that South East have the worst federal roads in the country with Police and military checkpoints at every 100m stretch many times causing serious accidents as logs of wood are left on the middle of the road by Police after closing from their daily extortion.
Ministry of works connives with contractors to keep asking for variations after delaying delivery dates.
Umahi should use this opportunity to reaward the road projects contracts in the South East and give only to companies ready to sign bonds on deliver before payment

Beremx:
The SE and SS have the worst roads in Nigeria despite the fact SS feeds the nation.
Too bad.