Reps ask FG to repair Apapa Ports, Kabba-Obajana roads

• Order probe of delay in HYPADEC take-off, FIRS
• Not all lawmakers can head committees, says Dogara 

The House of Representatives yesterday passed a resolution urging the authorities to reconstruct the Kabba -Obajana road in Kogi State. At the plenary session presided by Speaker Yakubu Dogara, the lawmakers also called for the rehabilitation of the Apapa port road in Lagos state.

The resolutions followed the adoption of motions sponsored by Tajudeen Yusuf, APC Kogi and Joseph Ayodeji, APC Lagos respectively. Yusuf, while moving the motion expressed concern over the deplorable nature of the Kabba -Obajana road which links the federal capital territory (FCT) to Kogi, Kwara, Ekiti and other states in the South West zone of the country.

He further claimed that motorists now suffer unnecessary delays, leaving them with the option of taking the Lokoja-Okene axis road due to the poor condition of the road.

The House thereby urged the federal ministry of works or the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA) to undertake immediate reconstruction of the Odabudabu bridge at Okebukun as well as beef up security along the Obajana-Kabba road to protect lives and properties of travelers and the affected communities along the route of the road.

On the Apapa port road, the lawmakers resolved to constitute an ad-hoc committee to determine why the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) failed to ensure that the condition for the grant of licences, which included locating tank farms outside the metropolis was kept.

Urging the federal ministry of works to rehabilitate the road and ultimately construct a dedicated bridge for cars and buses only with the aim of restricting trucks and trailers to a dedicated lane to reduce traffic congestion, the lawmakers urged the federal ministry of transport to make the construction of cargo rails an immediate priority in order to drastically reduce the use of trailers in the haulage of goods.

Prior to the adoption of the motion, Joseph said the deplorable nature of the port road is worsening the already chaotic traffic situation in the Apapa area resulting into loss of productive time by people who get stuck in the traffic gridlock.

Also, the House of Representatives has tasked the Committee of Power (when constituted) to investigate the reasons for the delayed take off of the Hydro Power Producing Areas Development Commission (HYPADEC) after the commission had spent N610 million from appropriations.

This followed a motion introduced on the floor by Mohammad Mahmud ‎entitled “need to address the non take off of the hydro power producing areas development commission (HYPADEC) five years after the act establishing it was passed into law.”

Also at its plenary, the House yesterday ordered an investigation aimed at ascertaining the manner how the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) maintain its records of revenue receipts, and if it is operating in compliance with the nation’s constitution, and its establishing statutes.

Abubakar Amuda-Kanike in a motion calling for a mandate on the Committee on Finance, when constituted to look into the accounting procedures of the FIRS, yesterday said in 2014, out of the N4.69 trillion generated by the Service, non-oil taxes were given as N2.24 trillion, and that four percent of the generated, amounting to N89.6 billion was presumably retained as operational costs for the year.

Meanwhile, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara yesterday declared that not all members should expect to be appointed Chairmen or Deputy Chairmen of Committees in the yet-to-be re-constituted Committees of the Green Chamber.

This came just as the panel in charge of the selection of heads, deputies and membership of the various House committees led by the Speaker yesterday began its inaugural meeting at the National Assembly.

It was learnt that the Speaker may name heads of its over 90 committees this week. Meanwhile, the House is expected to adjourn for recess on Thursday to resume next month.