The Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Media and Public Communications, Sunday Dare, has said that Nigerians may have to endure some of the difficulties associated with ongoing road construction as the Federal Government continues its infrastructure projects across the country.

Dare made the remarks during an interview on Channels Television while responding to questions on the deteriorating condition of the Benin-Abeokuta Road and concerns over the state of federal roads across the country.

Dare described the situation as an isolated case but acknowledged that government and contractors have responsibilities to ensure that road projects are properly executed.

“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,” he said.

He also faulted the contractor handling the affected road, saying the work carried out was not professionally done despite explanations offered by the contractor.
“The contractor talked about piloting, and what we see in this instance is that whatever piloting he did on the roads was not professionally done, very clearly,” Dare said.

According to him, the Minister of Works is expected to take punitive action against the contractor.
“We know that the Minister of Works is going to take some punitive action against them, and that will serve as a warning to several other contractors across the length and breadth,” he said.

Dare also addressed questions over how a contractor described as technically incompetent was awarded an important road project. He explained that contractors go through a procurement process where they are expected to present their qualifications, previous projects and technical proposals.
“You will present your documents, the work you have done. You bring your engineers to articulate what they would do,” he said.

However, he acknowledged that there could be a gap between what contractors present during procurement and their actual performance when projects are executed.
“Oftentimes you also find a gulf between what is presented at the procurement process and some competencies, and then when it’s translated into practice,” he said.

Dare said the technical requirements and key performance indicators for contractors handling major road projects may need to be reviewed.
“I think what’s important is that perhaps the level of technical competency should be looked at again, vis-à-vis the nature of our roads, and the KPIs for those that would take this contract should be reviewed,” he said.

Defending the government’s response to the Benin-Abeokuta Road crisis, Dare said the presence of the Minister of Works, lawmakers and other stakeholders at the site showed that the government responded swiftly once the problem became apparent.

“What we saw yesterday was the minister, the National Assembly members, and all the key stakeholders going in 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 immediate action,” he said.

The conversation also turned to the broader state of road infrastructure and whether Nigerians should expect immediate solutions to the problems affecting federal highways. Dare said road construction was a progressive process and that Nigerians would have to endure some of the inconveniences while projects were being completed.
“What we expect is a 100% solution, and solutions are progressive,” he said.

He cited the Abuja-Lokoja road as an example, saying he recently travelled along the route with about 65 journalists and observed ongoing construction.

“I’ve travelled on the stretch with about 65 other journalists about four weeks ago, went to Kogi State, and we saw the efforts in Abuja, the Lokoja stretch going down to Okene. Concrete work is being done in different sections, sometimes 70%, and that’s what happens with road construction. You build them in points, and eventually you join them,” he said.

According to Dare, motorists may still have to travel through old portions of roads while construction is ongoing on other sections.

“So you have stretches in which you have to travel on the old road with vehicles coming in in opposite direction, pending when you can switch to the one that hasn’t been completed,” he said.
He compared the process to constructing a house, stressing that infrastructure projects are not completed at once.

“The roof, until the roof comes on, the rain will still pour down on you. I think this President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, on top of what’s happening? Absolutely,” he said.
Dare said the Tinubu administration was overseeing a large-scale road construction programme involving hundreds of roads nationwide.

“We’re talking about the five biggest roads. We’re talking about 320 roads across the length and breadth of our country. A massive infrastructural effort of road construction,” he said.
He further said the President’s attention was not limited to road construction, noting that the administration was also working in sectors including oil and gas, education and agriculture.

“This country is vast. Beyond the road construction, there are efforts ongoing in about 90% of the credit sectors, in oil and gas, in education, in agriculture; all of these have the backing and the directives of the president. So it’s not just about road construction alone,” he said.

Dare also defended the role of the Minister of Works, saying the minister was carrying out responsibilities assigned by the President.
“Why do you have ministers? Why are they assigned? So we see the Minister of Works, assigned by Mr President, doing the necessary work to make sure that he fixes the roads in the country,” he said.

On criticism of the administration’s infrastructure projects, including concerns raised by Senator Babafemi Ojodu over the Ekiti-Ondo Road, Dare said the Minister of Works would respond to the specific issues raised. He said the administration was working beyond road construction, citing education, agriculture, social safety nets and local government autonomy.
“What you cannot disagree with is that you have the president and the government, an APC government, that is at work making efforts to meet the challenges facing this country,” he said.

Dare added that the implementation of the administration’s policies would require time and sufficient scale.
“Again, it’s a question of scalability, and it takes time. We’re just three and a half years down the road,” he said.

He maintained that the government had introduced policies and programmes aimed at addressing the country’s challenges, while acknowledging that their impact would depend on the scale of implementation.

It will be recalled that The Guardian had earlier reported on the Benin-Abeokuta Road, following an inspection of the troubled road by the Minister of Works, who was accompanied by members of the National Assembly, the Edo State Governor and other stakeholders, after complaints from residents and commuters over severe traffic gridlock and prolonged delays.