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Road maintenance initiative
Road maintenance initiative
THE Federal
Government recently announced new measures for the maintenance of federal roads
across the country. In the new arrangement unfolded by the Minister of Works,
Senator Adeseye Ogunlewe, each state controller of works will receive 10 million
naira monthly for maintenance of roads within their domain.
Five hundred roads across the country will
receive attention under the initial phase of the programme. Of this amount, N7.5
million is to be expended through direct labour on the patching of potholes,
clearing of road verges, road marking and signs among others.
By the arrangement also, a direct labour
maintenance base is to be established in each of the six zones and each
controller will contribute one million naira of the total monthly allocation for
the upkeep of such agencies in their zone even as another million is to be
channelled towards the establishment of road camps at designated locations along
federal highways.
This is a commendable move given
widespread complaints about the deplorable and sorry state of federal roads in
many parts of the country. Against the background of the paucity of funds and a
large workforce, the Federal Ministry of Works, apparently taking a cue from
some states, has taken a step in the right direction. Undoubtedly, the direct
labour approach will not only keep the staff in the ministry largely busy, but
will also save large sums of money which would otherwise, have been expended on
road maintenance contracts.
Also, the establishment of independent
monitoring teams in each state will constitute a formidable check on the state
work controllers under whose purview the programme has been charged. It is hoped
that both parties will live up to their responsibilities such that the high
expectations of the public from this seemingly novel concept will not be dashed.
This is moreso because, regular
maintenance of roads, especially those in rural areas, will have a salutary
effect on the economy given that it will facilitate the movement of agricultural
products, goods and services generally.
Out of the 200,000 kilometres of roads
nationwide, 32,000 are federal roads strategically located as inter state links.
Their regular maintenance, therefore, holds a lot of promise for inter state
transportation and hopefully, reduction of the hardship encountered by
motorists.
But it is pertinent to state that the
programme can only succeed to the extent that all parties involved show
dedication and commitment. The Federal Ministry of Works must ensure adequate
funding of the new arrangement to ensure that its high-minded objectives are
approximated.
Our policy makers have not been lacking in ideas but the constant policy
failure encountered on these shores have been largely on account of our
inability to succeed in the area of implementation. Thus the new initiative, as
visionary as it is, will come to naught if steps are not taken to ensure that it
is successfully implemented through strict and regular monitoring.
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