Senate urges FG to accommodate North-east in new superhighway projects

The Senate on Thursday asked the federal government to include North-eastern states in the newly approved superhighway project.

The upper chamber also urged the government to approve the rehabilitation of all dilapidated roads nationwide.

The resolutions followed a motion sponsored by Gombe Central Senator Danjuma Goje during the plenary session on Thursday.

Mr Goje, a former governor of Gombe State, expressed concerns about excluding the North-east zone from the N4.2 trillion road project approved by the Federal Executive Council (FEC) on 3 February.

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The FEC had approved the construction and rehabilitation of several major highways and bridges, including Lagos – Calabar Road, Delta State Access Road, Lagos – Ibadan Expressway, Third Mainland Bridge, Onitsha – Owerri Expressway, and several others across Ogun, Anambra, Enugu, Niger, Adamawa, Taraba and other states.

However, Mr Goje pointed out that the North-east was allotted only two projects, namely Yola – Fufore – Gurin Road (N11.81 billion) in Adamawa State and Lamido Road (N7.68 billion) in Taraba State.

He said the allocation for the zone was inadequate when the N4.2 trillion total budget for road projects is considered.

Mr Goje also listed several critical roads in the region that were in dire need of reconstruction, namely Bauchi – Gombe Road, Potiskum – Gombe Road, Yola – Mubi Road, Biu – Damboa – Maiduguri Road and Numan – Jalingo Road.

He maintained that the North-east remains the only zone not connected to the superhighway project under President Bola Tinubu’s administration.

Contributions

Many of the senators who contributed to the motion supported Mr Goje, basing their argument on the poor state of roads across the country.

Tahir Monguno (APC, Borno North) lamented that the North-east was the most marginalised region in terms of infrastructure and that it is negatively impacting economic activities.

Mr Monguno, the senate chief whip, urged his colleagues to support the motion.

Sani Musa (APC, Niger East) suggested summoning the Minister of Works, David Umahi, to explain why major roads remain in bad condition despite the availability of SUKUK funds.

Titus Zam (APC, Benue North-west) also complained about the Makurdi road, noting that it had become deplorable.

“The Makurdi road, as I talk to you, is no longer motorable. Several times, I have drawn the attention of the Senate on the need to access the federal roads,” he said.

Sunday Karimi (APC, Kogi West) proposed bringing back toll gates to generate funds for road maintenance.

He said in other countries, road users contribute to infrastructure funding through toll payments, and Nigeria should adopt the same approach.

Deputy Minority Leader Oyewunmi Olalere (PDP, Osun South) emphasised that the poor state of roads was a nationwide issue, not just a North-east problem.

Adeola Olamilekan (APC, Ogun West) said President Tinubu had allocated N500 billion in the 2025 budget for ongoing road projects.

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Calls for roadmap

The Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, criticised previous administrations for neglecting road infrastructure, leading to disrepair.

“I believe strongly that if the previous administration had gone into serious construction, we wouldn’t have this deplorable state of roads,” he said.

Mr Akpabio called for a comprehensive roadmap and a maintenance strategy to prevent further deterioration of roads across the country.

“We should have a road map on how to maintain our roads. We will continue to have these issues unless we sit down…..even if we declare the roads a state of emergency, we need to have a roadmap,” Mr Akpabio said.

Many senators supported the motion when the senate president put it to a voice vote.