NIGERIA (Abuja)---The Minister of Works, Mr. Mike Onolememen, has disclosed that the Federal Government shall issue N100 billion bond as part of measure to fast-track the completion of the Lagos-Ibadan expressway.

He said this when he was honoured by a committee tagged “Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Reloaded,” led by former Deputy Senate President, Ibrahim Mantu.

Onolememen explained that the N100 billion was in addition to the N50 billion to be sourced from budgetary provisions in the 2014 and 2015 fiscal years and N17 billion to be provided by a “government institution.”

He said: “Government can decide how it funds its road projects and government has made commitment of up to the sum of N50 billion.”

“And we also have government institutions that are putting money down for up to N17 billion

“We have decided as a government and as a ministry that in order to fast-track completion of that road, we will be issuing road bonds and infrastructure bond. And we will raise the balance of about N100 billion. That’s a novel way of funding construction projects across the world. That is what can guarantee the quick delivery of that road.

“Let me use this opportunity to dispel the calculated attempt by never-do-well, people with personal interests as against public interest, who sponsor spurious reports,” he said.

He noted that after three years of concessioning the Lagos-Ibadan expressway to a “Nigerian concessionaire” in 2009, for three years he did not as much as construct one kilometre of road.

“We terminated that concession because ab initio, that concession had failed completely. After three years, the concessionaire had not as much as tarred even a kilometre of road. There was no reason for any self-respecting government to tolerate that situation, especially when the contractor decided to abandon the original contract and started brandishing a new contract agreement for us to engage him. It was impossible and for us to do the needful, we had to cancel that concession and take the road back because it is our property.

“We have to improve on that road, reconstruct in the interest of Nigerians. In fact, since that road was re-awarded to Julius Berger and RCC, construction work has been going on unabated,” adding that people who travelled on the road in November could attest to the fact that all the failed portions and the pot-holes had disappeared.

He restated that major construction work had commenced.