This is just as the government also
formalised the Police Special Service in the interest of transparency and
accountability while approving N8.6 billion to the Ministry of Health for the
procurement of HIV/AIDS kits.
Briefing reporters at the end of the
Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting, presided over by President Muhammadu
Buhari at the State House, Abuja, Minister of Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde
Fashola (SAN), said the road contract would be executed on concrete and will be
the larger of such project in the country.
“The second memorandum presented by the
Ministry of Works and Housing was for the construction or the reconstruction,
as the case may be, of five road projects in favour of Messrs. Dangote
Industries Limited, totaling 274.9 kilometres of federal roads, under the
Federal Government Roads Infrastructure Tax Credit policy.
Those five roads, totalling 274.9
kilometres, will cost N309,917,717,251.35 to be advanced by the Dangote
Industries as a tax credit, he stated.
Fashola said: “The roads, specifically, are
Bama to Banki in Borno State for N51.016 billion with 49.153 kilometres; Dikwa
to Gamboru-Ngala, 49.577 kilometres in Borno State for N55.504 billion; the
Nnamdi Azikiwe Road, popularly known as a Western Bypass in Kaduna, 21.477
kilometres, from Command Junction to Kawu, in the sum of N37.560 billion and
the deep seaport access road sections 1 and 3 in Lagos State, through Epe to
Shagamu Expressway, 54.24 kilometres, that links Lagos and Ogun states, in the
sum of N85.838 billion; the Obele/Ilaro/Papalanto to Shagamu Road, 100
kilometres in Ogun State, in the sum of N79.996 billion.
“Council considered and approved this
memorandum, to facilitate the construction of 274 kilometres of concrete roads.
So, this will be the largest single award of concrete roads ever undertaken by
the government of Nigeria in one award.“
According to him, the award of the contract
to Dangote Group was consistent with funding options, adding that the award is
consistent with the government’s multiple funding options, which includes
engagement with the private sector.
The minister added that the tax credit
initiative was in existence in the last administration before the Buhari
government was inaugurated, but it was not utilised.
“So, this administration has revised it,
expanded it, and has used it to construct roads like the Apapa Wharf Road, the
Oworonsoki to Apapa, through Oshodi Road, by the same Dangote Group. The
Obajana-Kabba Road, still the Dangote Group. The Bodo-Bonny bridges and road,
which Council approved last week, through the NLNG.
“There was also interest by many other
companies that are being reviewed. So, it’s not unique to Dangote. So, he’s the
one who has applied and we’ve been in this process. So, this is the next batch
of roads that they are taking up. They invest their money and then instead of when
their taxes come due for payment, they net it off. That’s the circumstance.
This is not concessioning, this is tax credit policy, don’t let’s mix them
together.
“The policy says that anybody who wants to
invest his personal resources, and it includes individuals, in any
infrastructure that the public will have access to, can do so under certain
conditions, which includes applying to the Ministry of Works. The ministry
evaluates and there’s a tax credit committee chaired by the Minister of Finance
because they keep an eye on how much tax giveaway in one year so that it
doesn’t affect the government’s revenue performance, once we take on the
investment. So, it’s the committee that then approves and says go ahead, this
is good, this is how much tax we’ll allow per year and if the company is
satisfied, then we go to BPP and then come to FEC.”
The other approval obtained by the ministry
was to revise the total cost of the contract for the construction of Michael
Imoudu/Ganmo/Afon Junction Road in Ilorin, Kwara State.
According to Fashola, FEC considered and
approved the request to revise the cost of the construction of part of the road
by N204,411,926.13. The original contract sum was revised from N1.691 billion
to N1.896 billion and the completion period is now 12 months.
On his part, the presidential spokesman,
Mallam Garba Shehu, spoke on the memo presentations made by some ministers and
also approved by FEC, including the formalisation of the Police Special Service
in the interest of transparency and accountability.
According to him, the Minister of Police
Affairs, Mr. Maigari Dingyadi, had an important scheme which FEC approved.
He said: “It is the deployment of what they
call Special Police Services. And this is about a new system that will
formalise what has existed with us all the time. You know police provide escort
and guard for big corporations, banks, and so on. Now, in the interest of
transparency and accountability, the government is formalising this
relationship. And there will be an introduction of tariffs and billing schemes.
This will be using PPP (Public-Private Partnership arrangement).
“The police projected the use of consultant
that will help them to manage this. Part of the revenue will go to the federal
government. Part of it will go to the police. Part of it will go into police
allowances. And part will go to consultants as their own fees.
“This is something that has been going on
for many years. And it has happened virtually in all countries of the world. In
our own case, it has remained largely, people will say, undocumented or
non-formalised. Government is concerned about leakages in revenue and incomes
which should be blocked.”
He added that FEC also approved contracts
worth N754,048,161.25 for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC)
for capital projects for the supply of communications at the command and
control centre.
“This is to enable EFCC to comply with
modern-day investigative techniques, improve its operational efficiency and
support the administration of criminal justice system in the country. So, these
are basically defensive and offensive cyber-security systems.”
Also speaking, Minister of Health, Dr
Osagie Ehanire, said the council approved procurement contracts for his
ministry worth about N8.6 billion.
He stated that the ministry presented three
memos, which were all approved with one of them for the procurement of test
kits for HIV/AIDS.
“As you all know, Nigeria has succeeded in
driving down the HIV prevalence from 3% to 1.3%. The nationality indicator and
the impact survey that was done recently, now we want to push it further down
by being able to do more testing, particularly of mothers who may be carrying
HIV and they don’t know it, and they can pass it on to their unborn children.
“That’s sort of called the prevention of
mother to child transmission and also without routine tests that will be done
on people who may have absolutely no symptom at all but are carrying HIV virus.
So, these test kits we are procuring and we’re also including those test kits
that can also detect syphilis. Syphilis, as you all know, is another sexually
transmitted disease. So, this memo was presented today and passed by Council,”
he added.
Minister of Power, Mamman Sale, on his
part, said his ministry presented three memos which were all approved.
He said: “One is for the construction of 45
km Offafa-Umuahia Transmission Line in Abia State, in the sum of $170,465 plus
N814.1m. The second one is the construction of 150 33 132 33 1by 60 substation
at Obajana with line base extension at Lokoja in the sum of N259.9m.
“The last one is the construction, design,
and supply of 2 by 50 MVA 132 33 substations at Ikom with 2 by 132 line base
transmission at Calabar, Cross River State. It also includes the design and
construction of 220 km Calabar-Ikom 132 Cable Double Circuit Transmission Line.
The amount is $39.9m plus N9.5 billion.”