Lagos Govt. To Reconstruct Airport Road.

FOLLOWING the approval granted to the Lagos State Government by the Buhari led Federal Government to commence a total reconstruction of the International Airport Road from Oshodi area of the state, Governor Akinwunmi Ambode has expressed his administration’s readiness to commence the deployment of contractor to the site.

The State Governor, Ambode disclosed this on Wednesday through a statement issued by the Secretary to the State Government, Mr Tunji Bello.

The governor lauded Nigeria’s Acting President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, for his statesman-like approach to issues and for fast-tracking the process.

“We are very appreciative of the good gesture of His Excellency, the Acting President for acceding to our request which is not only very timely but a very heartwarming one. Posterity will never forget this genuine developmental action”, the statement reads.

The governor further described the approval as a 50th birthday gift to the people of Lagos State, stressing that it was a further demonstration of the determination of the present administration to ensure the effectiveness of the Executive Order on improving the Ease of Doing Business recently signed by the Acting President.

Also, he commended President Muhammadu Buhari for providing the enabling environment to induce foreign direct investment into the country, while expressing optimism that with the upgrading of the International Airport Road which he noted is the gateway to the nation’s commercial nerve centre, Nigeria would attract new investments.

It would be recalled that the governor raised an alarm about the present state of the Murtala Mohammed International Airport Road, which he described as a national disgrace, reiterating that its required immediate attention to salvage the nation’s image.

He added that Lagos State has a design for the reconstruction of the Airport Road as well as the funds to embark on the project, but was yet to get an approval from the Federal Government.

“The road linking Oshodi to the International Airport, you would all agree with me is a national embarrassment.

“In the spirit of the regeneration and urbanisation that this administration has set out to achieve, we believe strongly that the image that is exhumed by the decadence of that road must be repaired and we took it upon ourselves to appropriate the 2017 budget that the House of Assembly should approve the total reconstruction of the Airport Road from Oshodi to the International Airport.

“The state currently has a design of 10 lanes to come from Oshodi to the International Airport with interchange and flyover that would drop you towards the Local Airport. The contractor is already set to go and everything, as I said, has been completed and we already have the cash but alas, we are having challenges with the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing.

“This is a Federal and not a State road. The Federal Ministry of Works believes that they should do the road, but they have not been able to do it all these years past.

“I just want to appeal to the Federal Ministry of Works to let go or reimburse us with whatever it is that they are owing us and even if they are not willing to pay us now, we have the money to do it.

“It is a national disgrace and we would not be part of it. We would like to do it as part of the celebration of Lagos at 50,” the governor had submitted.

However, the Federal Ministry of Power, Works and Housing had explained that the delay in granting the request of Lagos State was because the memorandum conveying the request which was already before the Federal Executive Council was yet to reach completion stage.

The ministry said, “the Federal Ministry of Power, Works and Housing Ministry has presented the Memorandum conveying the request of the Lagos State Government to the Federal Executive Council, as was done with a similar request by the Kaduna State Government in 2016.

“Due to the fact that two of the roads also connect Ogun State, the Federal Executive Council could not reach an immediate decision on them because it requested the input of the other State Government affected”.