FG committed to mass housing, infrastructure devt in Lagos- Fashola

The Federal Ministry of Power, Works and Housing on Friday has said that it is committed to providing mass housing and infrastructure to residents of Lagos State.

Hakeem Bello, Special Adviser, Communications to the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, said that the ministry was constrained by some policies of the state government.

Bello said that the minister had interactions with Governor Akinwunmi Ambode on some procedures to make construction of housing units and road projects possible in the state.

He said that the state government had not complied with due process but expressed shock at some comments credited to the state governor in the media against the ministry’s infrastructure development drive.

“The attention of the Federal Ministry of Power, Works and Housing has been drawn to certain statements credited to the Governor of Lagos State, Akinwunmi Ambode, claiming that the “Federal Ministry of Works’’ has been frustrating the efforts of his administration to carry out a “total reconstruction of the International Airport Road from Oshodi’’.

“The Governor also reportedly accused the “Federal Ministry of Works and Housing’’, and Security Services of denying the state government access to the Presidential Lodge in Lagos, six months after President Muhammadu Buhari approved it for the State.

“This response is to ensure that members of the public are not misled by deliberate or inadvertent mis-statements.

“The allegations of lack of cooperation from the ministry and frustration of Lagos State Government development initiatives are simply not true and the facts do not bear them out,’’ Bello said.
According to him, In 2016, the Hon Minister for Power Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, approved the use of the Federal Ministry of works yard at Oworonsoki for Lagos State Government to create a lay-by to ease traffic.

“The Minister also approved that Lagos State be granted the Rights to manage the Street Lighting on the 3rd Mainland Bridge to support the security initiatives of the state, a request which the previous Federal Government administration had denied Lagos State for years.

“During the same year, the minister also supported the approval of the World Bank Loan of 200 million dollars to Lagos State; again a request the previous Federal Government administration had denied Lagos State.

“As far as International Airport Road which is currently the ground for alleged “frustration” is concerned, the correct position is that the Lagos State Government presented a request for FOUR roads that it would wish to take over.

Bello said that the ministry had conveyed the request of Ambode to the Federal Executive Council (FEC) as was done with a similar request by the Kaduna State Government in 2016.

He said that FEC could not reach an immediate decision because two of the roads were connected to Ogun State and required the input of the other state governor.

Bello said the Kaduna State Government made a similar request in November 2015 and got approval of two Federal roads transferred to the state in August 2016 because the state government followed due process.

He said that the alleged Presidential Lodge project was under the management of the Presidency and not the ministry.

“After the approval by President that the Presidential Lodge be handed over to the state government, there was a directive to the ministry to work out the modalities for handing over.

“The ministry has prepared a vesting instrument to convey the transfer and all that is needed is a survey plan.

“The Presidential Lodge is a high security location and officials of the ministry also require security clearance to enter in order to do any works. Access to the lodge is not under the control of the Ministry.

“The motive behind these public accusations must, therefore, be scrutinised coming barely a week after the governor spoke with the Minister, Babatunde Fashola on the outstanding requests of the state for several minutes.

“The minister took time to explain the situation of things to the governor.

“If there is any lack of co-operation, it is on the part of the state government that has refused to acknowledge, not to talk of approving the ministry’s request for Land for the National Housing Programme in Lagos.

“The ministry is not frustrated by this lack of response and remains optimistic that a response will come from Lagos State.

“The ministry remains committed to serving the government and good people of Lagos and will treat all their requests on merit and in accordance with necessary due process as will be done to other states,’’ he said.

He said that the ministry would refund N51 billion owed Lagos State on projects as was done with other states after it verified the claims.