Senator Muhammad Adamu Aliero has urged the Lagos State government to go into public-private partnership to fund infrastructural projects to move from relying on Federal Government’s budget for transformation of infrastructure.
Aliero, who led the Senate Committee on Works members on a courtesy visit to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu at the Lagos State House, Ikeja, said that depending on budget alone would not help the state achieve the desired result in infrastructural development.
The committee members arrived Lagos to inspect ongoing Federal Government road projects, rehabilitation and reconstruction of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway on Wednesday.
Aliero said that the committee would come up with a strong legislation to enable private sector fund infrastructure such as roads, adding that there was no way the Lagos State government could build roads without attracting tolls from them.
Citing Malaysia and other advanced countries of the world as examples where PPP aids infrastructural development, the senator said that Nigeria looked forward to a day when it would be like that.
On the projects’ inspection, the committee chairman expressed satisfaction with ongoing works, urging other states and businessmen to emulate the example of Lagos on road infrastructure, particularly the construction companies in which so much money had been involved.
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He noted: “These companies are taking it back to their respective countries; they should reinvest part of it in road infrastructure in Nigeria through tax credit. This will accelerate the reconstruction and rehabilitation of road infrastructure.”
The Senate Committee chairman, who disclosed that the Lagos-Ibadan road would get additional funding from the recovered Abacha loot, added that the loot would certainly accelerate completion of the road.
Aliero stated that the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway was being constructed with the latest technology and would last for about 40 years, adding: “We are highly impressed with ongoing works. This is a project that has been funded through the Sovereign Investment Fund. The project is not going to suffer because of lack of funds unlike other Federal Government-funded projects.”
“We also want to inspect Lagos-Badagry road, which is the gateway to African countries. We want to ensure that Nigerians get value for their money, we have allocated this money and we want to ensure that it is judiciously used. And the taxpayer is getting value for his money,” Aliero stated.
Responding, Sanwo-Olu, who thanked the team for the visit, also commended the Muhammadu Buhari administration for the support at the budgetary level by the Federal Minister of Works, Babatunde Fashola.
He noted that Lagos, as the old Nigerian capital, inherited a lot of assets, assuring that the state would continue to manage them and maintain the leading role as centre of excellence.
On the request for the collaboration on public-private partnership by the Senate committee chairman, Sanwo-Olu said the state would take it further, adding that Lagos had taken the lead and had advertised for Fourth Mainland Bridge, with investors expressing interest in six-rail corridors, among others.
