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The Kwara State Governor, Dr Abdulfatah Ahmed has called for more support from the Federal Government in the area of infrastructural development, especially federal roads, in the state.
Governor Ahmed made the call when he received the Minister of Works, Power and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, SAN, at Government House, Ilorin, on Monday. According to the Governor, the call became expedient as a result of sustained pressure on the state government on federal, state and local government roads across the state.
Governor Ahmed added that, the intervention of the Federal Government on federal roads would ensure cost savings for the state government in addressing other projects left untouched.
The Governor urged the Federal Government to hasten work on the completion of Ilorin-Ogbomosho-Oyo-Ibadan road as well as Jebba-Ilorin road to ease the movement of people and goods from the Northern part of the country to the Southern part.
“The issue of road, the issue of energy are very germane to our growth and development. We’ve come thus far with very poor levels of maintenance, that is why as a country we are faced with a huge challenge in infrastructure which has impeded the much desired economic growth that Nigeria should have witnessed”, he said.
Governor Ahmed expressed the readiness of the state government in allocating lands in urban and developing environment for the Federal Government’s Housing scheme.
Earlier, the Minister of Works, Power and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola said the Federal Government had commenced verification of Federal roads constructed by the Kwara State Government for reimbursement assuring that the Federal Government would reimburse the state and other states of the federation once their claims were verified.
Mr. Fashola said already there is an Inter-Ministerial committee put in place by President Muhammadu Buhari to verify claims on money spent on Federal roads by the various state governments.
Mr Fashola who said the Federal Government has identified Jebba – Ilorin road as one of the most strategic economic corridors in Nigeria that require urgent attention added that frantic efforts was been made to restore normalcy to the road in view of its strategic economic nature.
