• Uba Sani says president fulfilling promises to Northern Nigeria
Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja
The Minister of Works, Senator David Umahi, has declared that the economic reforms of President Bola Tinubu are beginning to yield tangible results, arguing that the administration’s aggressive investment in road infrastructure is helping to tackle insecurity, stimulate economic growth, improve agricultural activities and reconnect communities across the country.
Umahi spoke during the official flag-off of the reconstruction of the 122-kilometre Kaduna (Mando)–Birnin Gwari Road in Kaduna State, describing the project as another fulfilled promise by President Tinubu under the Renewed Hope Agenda.
The minister, in a statement by his spokesman, Francis Nwaze, maintained that road infrastructure had become a key instrument for addressing several of the nation’s socio-economic challenges.
“We are using this road infrastructure to fix the economic problems we met on the ground. We are using road infrastructure to fight the insecurity we met on the ground. We are using road building to fight hunger we met on the ground. We are using this road infrastructure to fight the injustices we met on the ground where some states had no federal project like Plateau, Gombe, Ebonyi and even Kaduna,” Umahi stated.
According to him, the Kaduna–Birnin Gwari Road will significantly improve connectivity between Northern Nigeria and Lagos by providing a shorter transportation corridor through Niger, Kwara, Osun and Oyo states.
“By doing this road, the president is shortening the distance between the North and Lagos. This is the shortest route to Lagos State because by the time it gets to Birnin Gwari, it leads to Niger, then connects Kwara, Osun, Oyo and Lagos. This is a very important road,” he added.
Umahi also pointed to improvements in security along the Abuja–Kaduna corridor, saying the reconstruction of the highway had helped change public perception about travelling on the route.
“I was told that before now it was a bad idea travelling from Abuja to Kaduna because of countless attacks, but it is now a thing of the past since the Abuja-Kaduna road project started,” he said.
The minister dismissed criticisms that the federal government was prioritising new road projects while neglecting existing infrastructure, insisting that several major rehabilitation projects were ongoing across the country.
He cited the Sokoto–Zamfara–Funtua–Zaria Road, the Enugu–Onitsha Expressway, the Makurdi–Ninth Mile Road, the Bodo–Bonny Road as well as the Abuja–Kaduna–Zaria–Kano highway among existing roads currently receiving federal attention.
Umahi stressed that road infrastructure remained critical to economic development because of its multiplier effects on other sectors.
“When a road is built, it is a catalyst. It is a GDP that grows other GDPs. When a road is built, insecurity is minimised, there is an agricultural revolution. When a road is built, there is an increase in commerce and education and that is what President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is doing,” he said.
The minister also disclosed that Tinubu had approved the construction of a 50-kilometre internal light rail system for Kaduna State valued at $868 million.
Congratulating Governor Uba Sani on securing the approval, Umahi said: “Governor, let me congratulate you. A very big one, internal light rail in Kaduna State has been approved by the President. It is a 50-kilometre light rail worth $868 million. This is a big one. You’re a goal getter.”
He further appealed to critics of the administration to engage constructively, saying the government remained open to useful suggestions.
“Democracy is by choice. The people criticising us should be constructive. It should not be insulting, deceitful or saying mundane things. I can testify that when you criticise us constructively, we have always gone to attend to such,” he stated.
Representing the President at the ceremony, Kaduna State Governor, Senator Uba Sani, reaffirmed the president’s commitment to the people of Birnin Gwari, recalling that Tinubu had visited the area before assuming office despite its security challenges and pledged to reconstruct the road.
According to the governor, the commencement of the project demonstrates that the president honours his commitments.
Sani also praised Tinubu’s interventions in Northern Nigeria, insisting that no previous administration had matched the current government’s level of commitment to the region.
“No President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria has done what President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has done for us here in Northern Nigeria, and I challenge everyone to come up with anything contrary to what I am saying. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has done a lot for us. We thank him for the love for the North, for the love for humanity and for the love for progress,” he said.
The Emir of Birnin Gwari, Alhaji Zubairu Jibril Maigwari II, also commended the federal government and governors of the affected states for the progress recorded in tackling insecurity, noting that improved security had enabled many displaced farmers to return to their farmlands after years of disruption.