Umahi said this at a news conference in Abuja on Wednesday, where he highlighted the Federal Government’s ongoing infrastructure interventions across the country.
He said although the South-East might not rank among the regions with the highest volume of Federal Government projects, the region was no longer being excluded from major national infrastructure initiatives.
The minister, who spoke from his experience as a former party chairman, deputy governor and governor, said previous administrations had failed to provide significant Federal Government projects in the region.
“I was a party chairman. I was a deputy governor. I was governor. And no single project of the Federal Government came to South-East,” Umahi said.
He, however, said the situation had changed under the Tinubu administration, with the region currently benefiting from what he described as a barrage of Federal Government projects.
“Today, we are having a barrage of projects. We may not be the first, second or third in terms of the volume of projects in the regions, but we are not the last,” he said.
Umahi said the development was significant because the South-East was now being integrated into the broader national infrastructure development agenda of the Federal Government.
He said the region could take pride in the fact that the Tinubu administration had done what previous administrations could not do by ensuring greater integration of the people of the South-East.
The minister disclosed that Tinubu had, in the past few days, approved two major projects in the region, including the Obanewi-Okiwe axis linking parts of Imo and another road connecting Otuocha in Anambra to Ibaji in Kogi.
He also cited the Second Niger Bridge and its associated bypass projects as major evidence of the Federal Government’s commitment to improving transportation infrastructure in the South-East.
Umahi urged people of the South-East to reciprocate the Federal Government’s infrastructure interventions by embracing greater political cooperation with other regions of the country.
“This is the right time. Let us have a handshake across the Niger, so that when our time comes, we will also be supported,” he said.
He stressed the need for Nigerians to move beyond regional politics and work towards a stronger national political system that would promote mutual support and development across the country.
Umahi restated his commitment to national rather than sectional political interests.
The minister also dismissed reports of serious divisions within the All Progressives Congress, particularly speculation surrounding his relationship with the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike.
Umahi described Wike as a progressive and said both ministers remained members of the same political family despite perceived political differences.
“We need Wike as Wike needs us. So, it’s one family,” he said, adding that the differences between them had been exaggerated by their political opponents.
He further disclosed that the Ministry of Works inherited 2,068 ongoing projects valued at about N13tn, noting that the administration was working to address the country’s infrastructure deficit.
Umahi argued that borrowing for infrastructure development should be regarded as an investment when the projects had the capacity to generate returns and contribute to national economic growth.
On the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, the minister defended the procurement process, explaining that the law recognised open competitive tendering, selective tendering and special procurement as valid procurement methods.
He said the first phase of the coastal highway was executed through special procurement because of the project’s complex terrain and the need to engage a contractor with specialised experience in coastal engineering.
He added that the process received the approval of the Bureau of Public Procurement and the Federal Executive Council.
Umahi also said the external financing component of the project was oversubscribed by international financiers by more than $100m, which he described as evidence that the project had been transparently handled.
He defended the ministry’s adoption of concrete pavement on major highways, saying the method would provide greater durability and could last for decades, potentially up to 100 years, when properly designed and maintained.
The minister disclosed that the Federal Government had launched “Operation Rescue” on the Asaba-Benin route following challenges associated with its concession.
He said the government had intervened in seven sections of the road to restore movement while plans were underway to redesign and reconstruct the route with concrete pavement.
On the Abuja-Kaduna-Zaria-Kano road, Umahi said the first 119-kilometre section had been completed, while the second section, covering 164 kilometres, was expected to be completed by November 15.
He said the various infrastructure projects across the country demonstrated the administration’s commitment to addressing the nation’s infrastructure deficit and improving connectivity among communities and regions.
“There is no part of this country, there is no state that is not a construction site under President Bola Tinubu,” Umahi said.
NAN
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