1 Billion Naira Approved For Third Mainland Bridge Repairs
The sum of N1.055billion has been approved for the of the repair and maintenance of the 3rd Mainland Bridge phase 11 in Lagos.
The approval was given by the Federal Executive Council (FEC) during its session which was chaired by Vice President Namadi Sambo in the absence of the President who is away on a working trip to France. FEC also directed the Ministry of Works to check stress on all bridges in the country, and ensure that there are maintained regularly.
Speaking to journalists during the weekly post-FEC briefing, the Minster of Information, Labaran Maku said: “We should not wait until something is wrong. This nation must invest in maintenance.” He pointed out that some of the huge amounts being spent on fixing Nigerian roads should have been saved if the roads had been properly maintained over the years.
He noted that some of the country’s bridges, like the Jebba bridge, Lokoja Bridge, Benue bridge and some others are now very old and “we need to ensure that there is a regular process of checking them, of measuring their integrity. That in every year’s budget there is provision to maintain the major bridges in the country”. He said the approval came following the result of a dynamic investigation on the 3rd Mainland Bridge in Lagos which revealed the urgent need to carry out additional repair works consisting of the replacement of 8 expansion joints at the mid span axes of the bridge.
“An underwater inspection was undertaken by the ministry and the resultant preliminary report revealed alarming deterioration and serious damages on a number of pile foundations of the 3rd Mainland Bridge” he said. "After deliberations, council approved the repairs of the 3rd Mainland bridge phase 11 additional works, involving the repairs of 8 expansion joints to eliminate noticed super-structure sources of stresses on the already compromised foundation structures of the Bridge in Lagos, in favour of Messrs Borini Prono Construction Co. Ltd, in the sum of N1,055,447,608.16 with a completion period of 9 months."
Maku told journalists that the construction company which will be handling the repairs is one of the last surviving of the companies which constructed the bridge in Nigeria. Maku also disclosed that the ministry of Science and Technology also got approval from FEC to go ahead with the experimentation of the solar panel it has been producing at Karshi in Nasarawa State, where it has been carrying out some research to ensure that Nigeria joins the rest of the world in the general shift towards clean energy, particularly solar energy.
“We believe that the creative utilisation of the solar energy is going to improve the general power and energy situation in the country” he said.
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