By Joseph Albert (Umunna TV)
Federal Government has explained that the sit-at-home order by the Indigenous People Of Biafra (IPOB) on Mondays and other days has contributed greatly to the seeming delay in the completion of the Second Niger Bridge project.
Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, who spoke on Channels Television, disclosed that for over two years; construction workers have not been able to work on the project on Mondays.
He also said that other challenges like relocating transmission lines connecting the East to the West across the Niger River have also contributed to the delay.
Federal Government had last week ordered the opening of the Second Niger Bridge for use starting from midnight on Thursday.
The Minister, who took a walk around the bridge during the inspection, advised road users plying the bridge to drive safely and responsibly in order not to defeat the purpose of its construction.
He pointed out that the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), completed the bridge to save lives and alleviate poverty occasioned by the waste of man-hours resulting from gridlock on the old first Niger Bridge.
On the need for motorists to obey the speed limit rule, the minister added, “The maximum speed limit on Nigerian roads is 100 km per hour. Don’t drive 101 kilometres per hour. The President will be happy to see users drive safely and responsibly while using this road, especially during the Christmas and New Year seasons. “It would be open for traffic going from the west to the east from December 15, 2022, to January 15, 2023.
“Let me be clear again; we haven’t finished construction work on the bridge, but we would open it for people to use to relieve the pressure from the one bridge. On January 15, 2023, we would reverse that movement for those coming from the east to the west.”
Share, follow and like our page at www.facebook.com/UmunnaTV or visit www.umunna.tv