Nigeria LNG Commended for Commitment to The Completion of Bodo-bonny Federal Road In Rivers State And Interest To Connect To East West Road   The Hon. Minister  of Works, His Excellency, Sen. Engr. Nweze David Umahi, CON has commended Nigeria  NLG Limited for its commitment to funding the completion of the Bodo-Bonny Federal road in Rivers State in line with the tripartite agreement with Federal Government and Julius Berger Nigeria Plc, and for indicating  interest  to connect the road to East West Road to maximize the economic potentials  of the area. The Hon Minister  made this commendation when the management  of Nigeria  NLG   Ltd led by its MD/ CEO, Dr Philip  Mshelbilla, visited him in his office at Federal  Ministry  of Works Headquarters, Mabushi Abuja on 11th December,2023. He further  commended  them for  putting  the interest  of Nigeria  first in their contractual  negotiations and for keying  into the innovations and ideals of the Renewed  Hope Administration of President Asiwaju  Bola Ahmed Tinubu,GCFR with respect  to quality, innovations, cost effectiveness  and timely completion  of  road projects embarked upon by Federal Government.    "Thank you very much. When I see Nigerians that are standing for the country, I feel very excited because Nigeria is our only country. We can't mortgage the country; we can't sell the country.   I saw your letter with regard to requests by Julius Berger Nigeria Plc, the contractor, to increase the contract sum. And you and your board together  with your team vehemently stood against that.  That gave me some teeth to bite because I saw a commitment by all parties that this project will not increase beyond the augmented amount of 199,000,000,000.    So, I want to commend you for that."    The Hon. Minister enjoined Julius  Berger  to respect the spirit and letters  of the tripartite  agreement and go back to site, assuring  that Federal  Government  would   offer compassionate  considerations on the remaining  16% uncompleted  job without  necessarily expanding the contract envelope.   "I discovered by the letters of JB that they have abandoned the site, and that's against the contract they signed, even if they needed to leave the site, the general conditions of contract specify the procedures  for notices in such a circumstance.   Well, we have discussed with them and I said, we are going to look at the remaining 16% on a compassionate ground,   and see whether there is any merit, and  we can see if there is any money left in the contingency, but definitely will not expand the envelope.   Expanding the envelope means you are going back to your Board. Expanding the envelope means my going back to Federal Inland Revenue, going back to BPP, going back to Mr. President, going back to  Federal Executive Council. So it's a long journey, and that will not allow that project to be completed as planned".   Speaking  on behalf  of the management  of Nigeria NLG Ltd, the  MD/CEO reiterated the  vision of the company  in not only building  a globally competitive LNG  company but also in contributing  towards  building  a better  Nigeria by  delivering  quality  infrastructure through projects  such  as the Bobo-Bonny  road being  funded  by NLNG. He assured  that everything  possible  would  be done to complete  the road on time  as provided under the agreement bearing in mind the concerns of the contractor handling the project.   "With regards to  coming back to the Bonny Bodo road, we see two parts to it, the main road itself. We are really looking forward to that being completed on time. We have had commitments in the past from the contractor around its completion and we do understand that there are concerns around  what is happening  in the economy  now".   He thanked  the Hon. Minister  of Works for his commitment to road infrastructure  revolution  and expressed hope that the economy  of Nigeria  would  bounce back with the  manifest  determination  of President  Tinubu's administration  in fixing  the critical  infrastructure  for the growth of our economy. He assured the Hon. Minister of the  readiness  of the company  to partner  with  Federal  Government  always  in her developmental  efforts.   "We have indicated an interest to pursue the extension of that road from Bodo so that it connects to the East West Road. That way you then have a complete corridor of major roads connecting to East West Road, rather than ending in Bodo.   In summary, just to thank the Minister  again, your commitment to projects like this across the country  will indeed make a huge difference to the common man, to transportation of people, farmers who need to move their products". ...

Celebrating a Leader of Distinction @ 61   1. I feel profoundly delighted to felicitate with the Senate President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, His Excellency, Senator Godswill Akpabio, CON on this auspicious moment of his 61st birthday anniversary, this 9th December 2023.   2. Your Excellency, I thank God for His faithfulness upon you and for the accomplishments of your golden age. You are truly an outstanding personality with exemplary excellence in all endeavors of life. As a Governor, you radiated excellence, and as a Minister, you were wonderful. I have no doubt that you will write your name in gold as Senate President of the 10th Senate. May God continue to inspire you with His boundless energy and endless passion as you strive to uphold the legislative integrity and a sense of personal dedication to humanity. May God prosper your new age and grant you greater heights as you advance the cause of humanity.   3. While wishing you eventful birthday celebration, please accept always the  assurances of the esteemed regards and best wishes of my family, the management and staff of the Federal Ministry of Works. Once again, congratulations, Your Excellency.   H.E. Sen. Engr. Nweze David Umahi, CON, FNSE, FNATE Honourable Minister ...

Federal Government Committed to the Completion of Bodo-Bonny Road Project in Rivers State, Directs Julius Berger Nigeria Plc to go Back to Site   The Hon. Minister of Works, His Excellency, Sen. Engr. Nweze David Umahi, CON has assured the host communities to the Bodo-Bonny Road & Bridge project in Rivers State that Federal Government under the Renewed Hope administration of President Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR would ensure the completion of the Bodo-Bonny Road and bridge project on record time.   The Honourable Minister gave this assurance during the courtesy visit of a delegation of Bodo–Bonny Road Peace Committee to his office at Federal Ministry of Works, Abuja on 5th December 2023. The Honourable Minister who described the project as a catalyst for economic revolution in the area stated that the project was awarded to Julius Berger Nigeria Plc by the previous administration and only about 84% of the project has been completed.   He noted that there was a partnership agreement in 2017 between Federal Government via Federal Ministry of Works and NLNG on modalities for the funding of the project. He wondered why the contractor; Julius Berger Nigeria PLC was no longer on site despite their commitment under their agreement to deliver within the revised date of completion.   He faulted the stand of Julius Berger PLC on variation of the project even when the company had signed a commitment to complete the project without asking for further variation. He maintained that "no equipment must be allowed to be moved out of site, they must complete that project as agreed and as signed and nothing has removed that responsibility which they willingly on their own signed. "I implore you the peace committee to report to me the progress that has been made on that road.”   “Bobo-Bonny project was augmented to 199billion, I am told by the Ministry and NLNG Limited (NLNG) that there was a document signed by Julius Berger that the project cannot be varied which means that the project cost cannot be increased, the project is about 35 kilometers.”   The Honourable Minister thanked the host communities for maintaining peace between them and the contractor handling the project despite the delays in handling the project and charged them to continue with their peaceful disposition to contractors handling projects in their area, noting that the Ministry would make sure that the Bobo-Bonny Road project would be completed by April 2024. “Nobody will hold this country to ransom, if they cannot do it, another person will come and do it and finish it even better but the only charge I give to you is not to allow any equipment out of sight until they complete the project."   The Minister equally said the Federal Government will equally handle a coastal road in the area of even greater site challenges, and the cost would not be up to what Government is paying Julius Berger. “I respect them for their quality and commitment, but we shouldn't be taken for granted” “it is a character of arrogance for them to demobilize from site.”   Earlier in his remarks, the Federal Director Bridges and Design Engr. O. O. Awosanya gave a brief history of the award and funding of the project by Julius Berger. He said the initial date of completion was supposed to be 31st December 2023 and that the road consisted of 13 bridges “We have three main bridges and we have nine mini bridges and one bridge over the pipeline. The project completion as of today is about 84% and the contractor has requested for a review which is against the spirit of the propagated agreement that was signed between the Federal Government, the Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas and JB in 2021.”   Delivering the mission statement of the delegation of the Bodo-Bonny Road Peace Committee, the Acting Chairman and leader of the delegation, Chief Dr. Charles John Jumbo thanked the President of Nigeria, His Excellency, Sen. Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR for the massive intervention he is bringing to the road sub-sector and appreciated the efforts of the Ministry of Works in changing the narrative of the road infrastructure in Nigeria “We also take this opportunity to express our heartfelt gratitude to our dear President, His Excellency Ahmed Bola Tinubu, President and Commander-In-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria for appointing a distinguished Engineer and administrator of your caliber to oversee the crucial Federal Ministry of Works. Your appointment has indeed sparked hope within us for the successful execution of various infrastructure projects within Nigeria, especially the Bodo-Bonny Road and Bridges Project.”   He said the delegation was in the Minister’s office to register their displeasure over the sudden demobilization from site and abandonment of the Bodo-Bonny Road and Bridge project by Julius Berger Plc despite the huge funds committed by the Federal Government through NLNG and implored the timeous intervention of Federal Government to avert the imminent hardship to be faced by the people of the area. “We observed the seeming demobilization of the contractors, Messrs. Julius Berger Nigeria Plc from the project site at about 80 per cent completion, leaving us deeply troubled as the Peace Committee and representatives of the communities directly imparted by the vital road network, we are apprehensive that the project’s discontinuation might result in yet another addition to catalogue of abandoned initiatives" He continued, "We  earnestly implore your immediate attention and intervention in addressing the current state of the Bodo –Bonny Road Project. Our communities remain committed to fostering peace and progress and the successful completion of this project. ...