According to Dare, the Federal Government must identify roads that require repairs and provide the necessary funding. Contractors, however, must ensure that they execute the projects properly. Dare also pointed to the contractor’s response to the situation. He said the explanations given did not remove responsibility for the road failure.
“Whatever played out yesterday, we had all the stakeholders there. And it’s important that even the contractor came out, even though he gave excuses, it showed a failure on their part,” Dare said.
Dare described the Benin-Agbor-Asaba incident as an isolated case. He also noted that road construction can face challenges during the rainy season.
“I think that first, these are isolated cases. And we all know by the nature of road construction, during rainy season, you encounter problems like this,” he said.
Umahi Inspects Troubled Benin-Agbor-Asaba Road
Dare spoke a day after the Minister of Works, David Umahi, inspected the troubled section of the Benin-Agbor-Asaba road in Edo State. Umahi also apologised to commuters over its condition. The minister took responsibility for the state of the highway and criticised the concessionaire handling its reconstruction. He later directed plans for the total reconstruction of the road.
Umahi reached the decision after concluding that palliative measures would not provide a lasting solution. When officials inspected the road, the Benin axis remained in poor condition. However, the gridlock that had persisted for about two weeks had eased.
Meanwhile, Dare said the swift intervention by Umahi, members of the National Assembly and other stakeholders showed the government’s willingness to respond to infrastructure challenges.
“Government has a responsibility to identify the roads that need to be fixed. Government has a responsibility to provide the funding. And then, the next responsibility goes to the contractors to do what is necessary.
“What we saw yesterday, the Minister, the National Assembly members, and other key stakeholders going there in record time, right on the spot. And I think that’s what good governance is about, responding as quickly and as swiftly as possible, putting the blame where it is, and requesting for immediate action,” he said.
Presidency Defends Federal Road Projects
Dare maintained that the Benin-Agbor-Asaba road failure does not represent the condition of federal road projects across the country. He said several roads had been fixed without similar complaints. Other projects, he added, are still progressing in different parts of the country.
“I said these are isolated, but we have quite a number of other roads where there are no complaints, where the roads have been fixed,” Dare said.
The presidential aide also defended the pace of road construction. He explained that motorists may face temporary inconvenience as contractors work on different sections of major highways. According to him, road projects often progress in phases. Motorists may therefore continue to use older sections while newly completed portions are brought into service.
“It’s like a house construction; a house is not built in a day, it’s progressive. Until the roof comes on, the rain will still pour down on the building,” he said.
FG Lists Major Road Projects
Dare said the Federal Government is undertaking major road projects across the country. These include five legacy roads and about 320 roads nationwide. He said the scale of the projects reflects President Bola Tinubu’s focus on infrastructure development. He also credited the Ministry of Works with implementing the administration’s road construction programme.
“Is President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on top of what’s happening? Absolutely,” Dare said. “We’re talking about 5 legacy roads; we’re talking about 320 roads across the length and breadth of our country.”
The Federal Government’s renewed attention to the Benin-Agbor-Asaba corridor follows complaints about worsening road conditions. The poor state of the route has disrupted transportation, damaged vehicles and increased the cost of movement and doing business along the corridor.
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