The Senate on Tuesday urged the Federal Government to, as a matter of urgency, consider an Emergency Intervention Fund of about N300 billion for critical roads in Niger State.
It said the state links the economic corridors in the North and South, hence the need for the Federal Government to declare a state of emergency on major highways in the state.
The upper chamber said the intervention would facilitate the infrastructure rehabilitation efforts of government to support ease of business and economic recovery.
The Senate in its resolution urged the Federal Government to declare a state of emergency on the critical roads in Niger state linking economic corridors in the North and South.
It also urged the Federal Government to direct the Federal Ministry of Works to carry out emergency stabilisation of the failed portions of Bida – Lapai – Lambatta road to ease the current suffering and rate of accidents and loss of goods and investments in the road.
The upper chamber further urged the Federal Government to consider an Emergency Intervention Fund for the critical roads in Niger State to the tune of N300 billion to concurrently fix the roads as part of the infrastructure rehabilitation efforts of the government to support ease of business and economic recovery across the country.
It also resolved that a National Legislative Roundtable on the State of Infrastructure for Economic Development be convoked, so as to bring all critical stakeholders in the transport and logistics industries together with a view to identifying urgent actions to address the current challenges.
The resolution was adopted just as senators bemoaned the deplorable state of critical roads across the country.
This was sequel to a motion brought to the floor during plenary by Senator Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi (Niger North).
Abdullahi, said, “The Senate noted with disbelief and shock the very ugly scene playing out in Niger State since February 24 to September 2021 in which heavy trucks and tanker drivers blocked all entry and exit roads to protest the horrible state of Federal roads passing through the state;