The Federal Government has temporarily suspended reconstruction work on the Ibadan-Ife-Ilesa Road, directing the contractor handling the project to halt operations and review pavement mixture specifications being used on the road.
Minister of Works, Senator Dave Umahi, gave the directive on Sunday to CBC Global Civil and Building Construction Nigeria Ltd. during an inspection of the Osun section of the ongoing road reconstruction project.
Umahi, who toured the Ibadan-Ife-Ilesa road project alongside federal lawmakers and other stakeholders, instructed the contractor to visit another project site to study the pavement mixture before resuming work.
“Go and check that mixture and then resume your work,” the minister said.
He also ordered the contractor to slow work on the carriageway and immediately form two teams to focus on constructing the inner and outer shoulders of the road.
According to him, the shoulder works are critical in certain sections and must be prioritised.
The minister warned that if the project would not be completed within the stipulated timeframe, he would withdraw the Controller of Works overseeing the project in Osun State.
Umahi disclosed that he had previously redeployed several controllers in other states and was prepared to do the same in Osun if necessary.
“I have removed a number of controllers in some states, starting with my own state.
“I am going to make a classroom in my ministry and bring professionals into the classroom. Those I am removing from sites are going to be learning every day. When you pass, we deploy you back to site,” he said.
The minister also criticised the issuance of a N2.8 billion palliative certificate to the contractor, saying he had not seen evidence of the work for which the payment approval was granted.
“I am on these roads and I have not seen where the palliative was done, but you already gave a palliative certificate of N2.8 billion,” he said.
Umahi directed the Controller of Works to withdraw the certificate within 24 hours and ordered the contractor to carry out the palliative work properly.
“I don’t want to see any pothole, and the agreement is that you will mill all the failed and cracked sections,” he said.
The minister further instructed the contractor to apply binder on the affected sections and emphasised that performance would determine future working relationships.
“My friendship is based on the work. I don’t have a permanent friend or a permanent enemy.
“We have to take responsibility for what the public has asked us to do,” he stated.
Umahi also directed the Controller of Works to remove heavy-duty trucks parked on newly constructed concrete sections of the road within 24 hours, warning that such practices could weaken the pavement structure.
“The moment you have those things parked, it generates internal stress on the concrete. You will not see it immediately, but that is the failure of the concrete,” he explained.
The minister additionally warned contractors handling solar streetlight installations on the road corridor to suspend the work until the shoulder construction is completed.
“Solar lights must be done when we are done. You can’t effectively do the solar lights on the shoulders until you have done the shoulders,” he said.
Despite the concerns, Umahi commended CBC Global Civil and Building Construction Nigeria Ltd. for its commitment to the project, noting that the company had continued work despite outstanding payments from the government.
“We have not paid them. They are working on 108 kilometres. They have done about 70 kilometres, and they do about one kilometre per day,” he said.