FG owes 16 states N580bn on rehabilitated roads

The federal government owes 16 states the sum of N580.5 billion for the various rehabilitation works carried out on some federal roads in their territories.
The revelation was made at the public hearing of the joint House of Representatives committees on works and finance chaired by Reps Toby Okechukwu (PDP, Enugu) and Babangida Ibrahim Mahuta (APC, Katsina) yesterday in Abuja.
The public hearing was to ascertain the claims by state governments of expenditures incurred on the rehabilitation of federal roads in their states.
Ogun State tops the list with the sum of N222.977 billion, while Akwa Ibom State followed with N75.9 billion.
Giving the breakdown of the amount the federal government was owing Ogun State, the permanent secretary in the state ministry of works and infrastructure Engr. K. A. Ademolake said the state government had awarded 38 contracts for the construction of the federal roads in the state from 2007 to date.
He said out of the total sum, the state government had paid the sum of N123.7 billion to the contractors, while there was no single reimbursement from the federal government.
He listed some of the contracts to include the constructions of Sango/Ijoko/Ijodu-Abiodun road which was awarded to CSCC at the sum of N34.9 billion; Agbara-Atan, Lusada-Igbesa, Lusada-Alapoti road, awarded to CCECC at N17 billion; Lafenwo Ayetoro road, N14 billion; Papalanto-Ilaro/Fed Poly road, N14.7 billion and OGTV/Brewery road at N13.9 billion among others.
The breakdown of other states being owed by the federal government showed that Zamfara State came third with N57.92bn; Anambra State has N43.427bn; Oyo, N32.93bn; Enugu, N25.930bn; Cross River, N25.701bn; Ebonyi, N21.85bn; Plateau, N19bn; Sokoto, N13.103bn; Kwara, N12.855bn.
Others are Ekiti State with over N11bn; Abia, N5.2bn; Adamawa N4bn; Gombe, N3.851bn and Bauchi, N1.9bn.
The affected states therefore urged the committee to do everything possible to ensure that the federal government settled the outstanding amounts.
Earlier, Speaker Yakubu Dogara said, while declaring the hearing open, that the state governments must adhere to the provisions of the procurement Act in rehabilitating federal roads.