‘Underntoidate’ – Umahi blamed Kwankwaso’s claim about northern neglect

The Minister of Work, Senator Dave Umahi, has rejected claims for northern neglect by the current government.

Former Governor of Kano State, Rabiu Kwankwaso, on Thursday accused that the administration of the Tinubu Bola President had focused development in the south to harm the northern part of the country.

But in a statement on Saturday, Umahi described Kankwaso’s comments as wrong and misleading.

The former Governor of the State of Ebonyi stressed that northern Nigeria, especially northwest, where Kwankwaso originated, has benefited more than a federal road project under the Tinubu government than other regions.

He said: “The president is fair.

“In fact, from the current main administrative heritage project, the North has a bigger part.”

The Minister registered the Sokoto-Badagry Superhighway which included 1,068 km, with 378 km took place in the states of Kebbi and Sokoto, as one of the inheritance projects.

He noted that the Superhighway was longer than the Lagos-Calabar beach.

Umahi revealed that the North has 756 km of road construction (measured in the equivalent of three lanes) at this time, while the south has 409 km.

Also read: Kwankwaso accuses the Tinubu government to develop in the south, leaving the north

He registered several main projects that were taking place in the north as Sokoto -Zamfara -Katsina -Kaduna Road (275 km dualized), Abuja -Kaduna -Kano Road (350 km dualized), Bua Tax Credit Road through Jigawa, Katsina and Kano (256 km).

Others are -Jalan Bypass North Kano (49 km), Bama and Dikwa in the state of Borno (100 km), Borno Ring Road (110 km), Malando Road in Kebbi (76 km), Road Roadsin (86 km), Loku -Dualized), Loke -Dualized Loko -Dualized (86 km (86 km) -Dualized (86 km (86 km (86 km (86 km (86 km (86 km (86 km (86 km (86 km) (86 km (86 km (86 km (86 km (86 km (86 km) (86 km (86 km (86 km (86 km) (86 km),

In the south, the Minister said the free Lagos-Sili Express Road, Oyo-Oogbomoso-Ilorin, Jalan Enugu-Onitsha, East-West (South-South) road, the second Niger Bridge access road (in the two Anambra and Delta) and Bodo-Bonny roads in the river.

He said many projects inherited from the last administration, added that the Tinubu government ensured funds for their continuation.

He said: “In the NNPCL Tax Credit project inherited from the previous administration, the North received 53 percent and 47 percent south.

“Southeast and Southwest only receive 4% and 5% each.”

He also said that, contrary to the claim of Karkwaso, the President had shown a commitment to national development.

“Our president is fair and afraid of God. I encourage the Nigerians to ignore the statement of misleading the Karkwaso senator.

“President Tinubu is committed to the unity and development of Nigeria,” he concluded.

Check Also

Freedom of Information Act and The Limits of Press Freedom, By Mack Ogbamosa – THISAGE

        Introduction  A free, independent, and vibrant press is one of the strongest pillars of any democratic society. It is against this background that most democratic countries  make constitutional provisions for a free press . Others even go further to enact specific laws to make affairs of governments freely available to the public. Currently, there are more than  130 countries in the world that have free press laws. They include Sweden, United States, France, South Africa and Nigeria. Nigeria did not only make  constitutional provisions in Sections 22 and 39(1) of the 1999 Constitution ( as amended) but also went ahead to enact the Freedom of Information Act  in 2011. Section 22 of the 1999  Constitution states: “ “The press, radio, television and other agencies of the mass media  shall at all times be free to uphold the fundamental objectives contained in this chapter( ie Chapter II) and uphold the responsibility and accountability of the Government to the people”  Section 39(1)  of same Constitution states : “Every person shall be entitled to freedom of expression, including freedom to hold opinions and to receive and impart ideas and information without interference” ..  To complement these constitutional provisions, Section 1 (1) of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) states “Notwithstanding anything contained in any other Act, law or regulation, the right of any person to access or request information, whether or not contained in any written form, which is in the custody or possession of any public official, agency or institution howsoever described, is established.” while Section  2(2), states that: “A public institution shall ensure the proper organization and maintenance of all information in its custody in a manner that facilitates public access to such information”  Primary Purpose of FOIA  According to the Act, its primary purpose is to make information about public records freely available to every Nigerian in the public interest. …

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *