President Muhammadu Buhari on Monday commissioned the Kano-Maiduguri Road, Section II (Shuwarin-Azare) connecting Jigawa and Bauchi States, bringing relief to travellers and motorists on the highway.
The 142.2 kilometre dualised road brings to five the number of such roads commissioned and handed over across the country in what the Federal Government termed ‘season of completion and impact’ which began 19 days ago.
The other roads so far commissioned by the President within the period include the Sokoto-Tambuwal-Jega-Kontagora-Makera Road, the Vandeikya- Obudu Cattle Ranch Road, the Nnewe-Oduma Road, and the Kano- Maiduguri Road Section III (Azare-Potiskum).
Buhari, who was represented by the minister of water resources, Suleiman Adamu, called on Nigerians, especially the communities through which the roads pass, to take ownership and protect the roads, which, according to him, “have been built to the highest quality of design and workmanship” in order to enable them last their designed lifespan.
The President, who also described the commissioned roads as “part of our many roads to prosperity”, told Nigerians, “Now that we have this new and well-built roads, we have duties to ourselves and to other road users”, listing such duties to include avoiding abuse of the roads and compliance with the nation’s traffic laws as stipulated in the highway code.
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According to him, abuse of the roads could take the form of overloading of vehicles and trucks which accelerates pavement damage, spilling of petroleum products, which dissolves all the components and allows water to penetrate, and converting the road shoulders to permanent parking places, which brings the onset of road failure from the shoulder.
“We must all do our best to avoid these practices, report them when they occur and act in a lawful manner to stop them”, the President said adding, “Accordingly, for the avoidance of any doubt, I wish to reiterate that the maximum driving speed on this and other Federal Highways nationwide is 100km and no more”.
Paying tribute to the patriotism of the Nigerians who participated directly or indirectly in the construction of the roads, Buhari said it demonstrated the capacity of the people to build quality infrastructure that could stand the test of time adding that both those employed directly to build the roads and the scores of suppliers employed indirectly by providing the machines utilized in the construction were not only nation builders but also the heart of the Nigerian economy.
“The road is also a story of the capacity of our people; the patriotic Nigerians who were employed directly to build this road, the scores of suppliers employed indirectly who are responsible for providing the machines utilized in the construction. These are not only nation builders to whom we offer our salutations, they are the heart of the Nigerian economy, the micro, small and medium enterprises that drive our economic growth”, he said.
Minister of works and housing, Babatunde Fashola, said the ‘season of completion and impact’ was an affirmation of “the progressive administration of President Muhammadu Buhari in every state of the country.”
Fashola, who was represented at the event by the permanent secretary in the ministry, Babangida Hussaini, said the road projects already handed over and many that would soon be commissioned in various parts of the country represented major investment in road transport infrastructure, which, according to him, “is a commitment of the Buhari administration as a driver for economic growth and prosperity”.
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