ABUJA (Sundiata Post) – The Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC) has disclosed reasons the construction of the Second Niger Bridge cannot go ahead in its current format.
It said it was currently withholding its Certificate of Compliance for the project because of many issues the commission was not comfortable with.
One of such issues, he said was that the ministry has been asked to review the cost of the project with a view to justifying it.
Secondly is the clamour for compensation by owners of the land where the project is being sited.
The commission’s director-general, Mr. Aminu Diko, said this while speaking with State House correspondents after briefing President Muhammadu Buhari of ICRC’s activities in the Presidential Villa, Abuja on Wednesday.
He said the commission was already engaging the Ministry of Work on how to resolve the issues.
He said, “The issue of the Second Niger Bridge is one of the projects that we discussed with the President.
“We did say that the project is in the commission for regulatory oversight. We have been discussing the transaction with the Ministry of Works.
“But before it can be finalised, the commission has to give a certificate of compliance, but we have not done that because we have seen a lot of issues that we are uncomfortable with.
“We are talking with the Ministry of Works for them to correct it. The communities around that area are clamouring that their lands have been taken and that they have not been compensated adequately.
“As a matter of fact, we got a letter from Onitsha Traditional Council complaining that they have not been adequately represented in this transaction.
“With this kind of issues, we are not saying that something has not been done properly but we need to be convinced that these few problems are
sorted out properly.
“We will also talked about the actual cost of the bridge, eventually we have asked the Ministry of Works to review it and justify how much the project should cost.”
Diko said he had no idea of the present state of the project which groundbreaking was done with fanfare by the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan.
He, however, said it was normal for projects under the Public Private Partnership to take time.
He explained that there would be a lot of studies, including integrity test, that will be done on the bridge.
Diko added, “I have no idea about the status of the project, what I need to tell Nigerians is that PPPs take a long time to mature.
“There is a difference between the project which you have money in your pocket or in your account and you just bring it out and tell somebody to go and do it.
“But when it is PPP transaction, you first engage a number of people. You have bankers, lawyers, engineers. They all collaborate to form consultancy for that transaction.
“For the Second Niger Bridge, there will be a lot of studies that need to be done on the integrity of the bridge itself which will take time, it is not something we can see being completed in the next six months.
“I will like us to be patient about it, we know that it is a critical road, we also know how Nigerians suffer during festive holidays and we hear people sleep on that old bridge. The time has come for us to bring succour Nigerians.”
While admitting that there are a lot of gaps in the way PPP is currently being operated in the country, Diko said part of their brief was to tell the President about the imperative of PPP in nation building.
He said the private sector both in and outside the country must be accepted as partners in progress, provided that the nation would not be short-changed in anyway.
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He said while the private sector would be allowed to invest in the country and recuperate their investments, the ICRC would be there to guide Ministries, Departments and Agencies on how to structure the transactions.
The ICRC boss added that when properly signed and executed, the commission would also take custody of the agreements to ensure that there is total compliance.
He added that he also told the President some of the limitations the commission has, the most significant of which, according to him, is is the commission’s enabling law. He described the law as ineffective.
Diko explained, “It (the law) is very ineffective. So we have proposed an amendment to the law and he has agreed to support the passing of the bill when it comes back to him from the Attorney-General’s office.”
It said it was currently withholding its Certificate of Compliance for the project because of many issues the commission was not comfortable with.
One of such issues, he said was that the ministry has been asked to review the cost of the project with a view to justifying it.
Secondly is the clamour for compensation by owners of the land where the project is being sited.
The commission’s director-general, Mr. Aminu Diko, said this while speaking with State House correspondents after briefing President Muhammadu Buhari of ICRC’s activities in the Presidential Villa, Abuja on Wednesday.
He said the commission was already engaging the Ministry of Work on how to resolve the issues.
He said, “The issue of the Second Niger Bridge is one of the projects that we discussed with the President.
“We did say that the project is in the commission for regulatory oversight. We have been discussing the transaction with the Ministry of Works.
“But before it can be finalised, the commission has to give a certificate of compliance, but we have not done that because we have seen a lot of issues that we are uncomfortable with.
“We are talking with the Ministry of Works for them to correct it. The communities around that area are clamouring that their lands have been taken and that they have not been compensated adequately.
“As a matter of fact, we got a letter from Onitsha Traditional Council complaining that they have not been adequately represented in this transaction.
“With this kind of issues, we are not saying that something has not been done properly but we need to be convinced that these few problems are
sorted out properly.
“We will also talked about the actual cost of the bridge, eventually we have asked the Ministry of Works to review it and justify how much the project should cost.”
Diko said he had no idea of the present state of the project which groundbreaking was done with fanfare by the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan.
He, however, said it was normal for projects under the Public Private Partnership to take time.
He explained that there would be a lot of studies, including integrity test, that will be done on the bridge.
Diko added, “I have no idea about the status of the project, what I need to tell Nigerians is that PPPs take a long time to mature.
“There is a difference between the project which you have money in your pocket or in your account and you just bring it out and tell somebody to go and do it.
“But when it is PPP transaction, you first engage a number of people. You have bankers, lawyers, engineers. They all collaborate to form consultancy for that transaction.
“For the Second Niger Bridge, there will be a lot of studies that need to be done on the integrity of the bridge itself which will take time, it is not something we can see being completed in the next six months.
“I will like us to be patient about it, we know that it is a critical road, we also know how Nigerians suffer during festive holidays and we hear people sleep on that old bridge. The time has come for us to bring succour Nigerians.”
While admitting that there are a lot of gaps in the way PPP is currently being operated in the country, Diko said part of their brief was to tell the President about the imperative of PPP in nation building.
He said the private sector both in and outside the country must be accepted as partners in progress, provided that the nation would not be short-changed in anyway.
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He said while the private sector would be allowed to invest in the country and recuperate their investments, the ICRC would be there to guide Ministries, Departments and Agencies on how to structure the transactions.
The ICRC boss added that when properly signed and executed, the commission would also take custody of the agreements to ensure that there is total compliance.
He added that he also told the President some of the limitations the commission has, the most significant of which, according to him, is is the commission’s enabling law. He described the law as ineffective.
Diko explained, “It (the law) is very ineffective. So we have proposed an amendment to the law and he has agreed to support the passing of the bill when it comes back to him from the Attorney-General’s office.”