Gov. Nasir Idris of Kebbi State, has donated 10 Toyota Hilux vehicles to the Federal Ministry of Works to enhance the security of personnel and contractors handling the Sokoto to Badagry Superhighway.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the vehicles are meant to complement the security efforts being provided to the workers, including the contractor’s field workers, Engineers and personnel from the ministry executing the project.
Presenting the vehicles to the Minister of State for Works, Alhaji Mohammed Bello-Goronyo, the Governor said: “Today is another day for the State Government to fulfil its promise.
“Everybody knew that Kebbi takes a lion share of the Sokoto-Badgry Superhighway, we have about 258 kilometres of two lane to be constructed here in Kebbi.
“The work is going on smoothly, but because of security issues, we decided to ensure that the construction do not have any hitch, hence the decision of Kebbi Government to provide security vehicles so that they can man the construction site.”
The governor assured that the state government had given more emphasis to the project, especially the corridor under its domain.
He observed that by the time the road “is completed”, it would certainly improve business and farming activities of the entire state.
“Therefore, on behalf of Kebbi Government, I want to seize this opportunity to handover these ten brand new Toyota Hilux to the Honourable Minister, State for Works, Mr Mohammed Bello-Goronyo,” he added.
Receiving the vehicles, Bello-Goronyo, said the gesture had demonstrated the governor’s passion and commitment for a better and prosperous Nigeria.
“This shows that you have key into the Renewed Hope Agenda of our dear President, President Bola Tinubu. This has been demonstrated clearly.
“So, what you have done here today is a clear demonstration of your commitment and support to our dear president,” he said.
The minister assured the governor that the vehicles would be put to proper use to ensure that they serve the purpose they were meant for, adding that the Badagry Superhighway had come to stay.
“Already, the work has started in honest, we have achieved almost 64 kilometers clearance, we have filled over 30 kilometers
“We have achieved four kilometers double lane on concrete and we have started putting solar lights five kilometers now all in Kebbi alone.
“Your Excellency, the purpose of this Sokoto-Badagry Superhighway is to open up economic corridor, provide safer travels, and have easy access to farmlands and dams, so that economy can open and business activities can flourish,” he said.
According to him, there can’t be meaningful development or progress without infrastructure, assuring that infrastructure remains a key to societal growth and development.
The project, he said, apart from safer travel, reducing travel time, it would equally reduce insecurity “among our communities, because this road is going to provide a lot of corridors whereby economy can flourish through small and medium scales activities.”
The minister identified other facilities on the superhighway to include; solar lights, CCTV cameras, boreholes in each five kilometres, Police stations, schools and trees would be planted across the corridors.
“The essence of it all, Mr President wants to open up this country to ensure that we connect to our communities, to our towns, to our villages.
“This project starts from Ilella, a border town to Niger Republic and is going to open up that trade route.
“We all know that apart from this important superhighway, which is crossing Sokoto, Kebbi, Niger, Kwara, Oyo, Ogun and Lagos States and is going to terminate at Badagry and a Costal Highway has already linked from Badagry all the way to Calabar.
“And from Calabar you begin another trans-Sahara all the way to FCT, it is cris-crossing Calabar, Ebonyo, Edo, Benue, Nasarawa and FCT,” Bello-Goronyo stated.
He said another highway from Akwanga to Jos to Bauchi to Gombe was another interconnectivity of road network
“So, by the time we finish these four legacy projects, the entire country is opened and businesses are going to flourished.
“Mr President has made a promise in his mind, he kept it, and now he has demonstrated it,” he said
