RAILWAY PROJECT: Amaechi dissatisfied with pace of work by CCECC
Oru Leonard
Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi has expressed dissatisfaction with the pace of work on the Kaduna/Kano standard gauge rail line.
The Minister who stated this while addressing journalists in Kano during an inspection tour of the project accused the contractor, the China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation, CCECC of applying delay delay tactics on the job.
Amaechi disclosed that the federal government has provided adequate mobilisation to CCECC enough to mobilize the contractor, begin work on the project and wondered why no meaningful progress has been made despite the effort of federal government to get the project off to a good start.On what action to take he stated, “Out of 204km length, only 78km has been graded by CCECC.
Truth is CCECC is playing politics; they have abandoned construction. The speed of work is extremely slow. I know they will complain of lack of money. I don’t want to say much until Wednesday at the Federal Executive Council, FEC, meeting. If nothing changes, I will tell the country what is happening and take a decision.
On the Port-Harcourt/Maiduguri rail line, he said that CCECC is yet to commence work. “We have given them some money. They ought to have started work by now but if you go there, nothing is happening. It is an old track. We can’t just give you money and you go to sleep,” he said.
On quality of work done, Amaechi said, “quality is guaranteed. Quality is not out problem. Our problem is speed.”
The 204km rail corridor consists of 13 large and medium sized bridges, 17 framed bridges, 60 highway overpasses, 12 pedestrian overpasses and three stations.
The Minister was accompanied by Dr. Magdalene Ajani, Permanent Ministry, Federal Ministry of Transportation; Engr Ibrahim Alhassan Musa, Chairman Nigerian Railway Corporation, NRC, Fidet Okhiria, Managing Director of NRC, among others.
