by Isiaka Wakili; DailyTrust
As the year ends tomorrow it has emerged that nearly half of federal government’s N1. 6 trillion 2014 capital votes have gone to the South- South, President Goodluck Jonathan’s geo-political zone.
The region got projects worth N639.306 billion which is more than the total amount of money spent on projects in the rest of the five geo-political zones of the country.
The figures are based on the analysis of contracts awarded during the year by the Federal Executive Council (FEC), at its weekly meetings chaired by President Goodluck Jonathan.
Zone-by-zone data analysis of federal projects are South-South: N639.306 billion; South-West: N256 billion; FCT:N193 billion; South-East: N111.3 billion; North-Central:N101 billion; North-West: N62.151 billion and North-East: N23.767 billion.
The total amount shared among the zones as shown above is N1.387 trillion.
This excludes N262 billion of the total amount spent on other programmes but not pinned down to any particular zone.
These are N240m approved for 44 SURE-P jeeps; $300m (N55.5bn) diaspora bond; N80bn global depository notes; $82m (N15.2bn) loan for polio eradication in the country; N1.1bn for two locomotives for new standard gauge rail line across the country; $495m (N91.57bn) for irrigation management in the country and N9.287 billion for the purchase of cooking stoves and wonder bags for rural women across the country.
The South-South zone also got billions as derivation fund, which is 13% of oil revenues accruing to the Federation Account.
Similarly, billions of naira was provided for the region through budgetary allocations to the Niger Delta Ministry and the Niger Delta Development Commission.
The National Assembly on April 9 passed the 2014 budget totalling N4.695trn, an amount which is N52.2bn higher than the N4.642trn submitted by President Jonathan. Highlights of the budget are: statutory transfers, N408,687,801,891; debt service, N712,000,000,000; recurrent expenditure,N2,454,887,566,702; capital expenditure, N1,119,614,631,407; and aggregate expenditure, N4,695,190,000,000.
A review of monthly contract award by FEC shows that there was no contract approval for February and May.
But in January, a sum of N30.5 billion was approved as follows: March, N167 billion; April, N28.2 billion; June, N56.8 billion; July, N28.8 billion; August, N2.6 billion; September, N157.8 billion; October, N197 billion; November, N366 billion and December, N506.2 billion.
At its first meeting on January 15, the FEC approved $11.2m (N2.07bn) for the supply of 746Km of Aluminium Conductor Composite Core Reinforced in Onitsha, Anambra State; while on January 22, N28.11bn was approved for the provision of engineering infrastructure for Wasa District in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
On January 29, N240m was approved for the purchase of 44 jeeps for the Subsidy Reinvestment and Empowerment Programme (SURE-P).
On March 5, FEC approved $300m (N55.5bn) Diaspora Bond; N80bn global depository notes and $170m (N31.5bn) for a power transmission project in Abuja.
On April 23, a loan of $152m (N28.1bn) from the African Development Bank (ADB) was approved for the development of the agricultural sector.
On June 4, the council approved N40bn for Second Lagos State Development Policy Operation and the Lagos-Epe Secondary Education Project; N2bn for operation and training of staff for Wupa Basin Sewage Treatment Plant in FCT; and N722m consultancy services for the shore protection and rehabilitation of Escravos breakwaters & Greenfield Port development at Ogidingbe, Delta State.
Also same day N14bn was approved for engineering infrastructure for Gida Daya Area of Kurudu District, FCT, on June 25.
On July 2, a sum of N5.6 billion was approved for Mangu Dam in Plateau State and $82m (N15.2 billion) loan for polio eradication on July 23.
The FEC, on August 27, approved $14m (N2.6 billion) for two power transmission projects in Anambra State.
On September 3, a sum of €43 million (N8.9 billion) was approved for the contract of the design and construction of four 60TON Bollard Pull Marine Tug Boats.
Also approved was $5.8 million (1.1 billion) for the engineering design, manufacture, supply, installation, testing and commissioning of 2x60MVA, 132/33KV at Amasiri and 2x132KV line bays extension at Abakaliki, Ebonyi State for the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN).
On September 10, a sum of N367 million was approved for the purchase of power transformer in Maiduguri, Borno State.
On September 17, the FEC approved N147.4 billion for major road contracts in Kogi, Edo and Ogun States.
The contracts were listed as: Contract No. 6135 for the dualisation Lokoja-Benin Road Section I: Obajana Junction-Okene (40.00km) in Kogi State, N18.9bn; Contracts No. 6136 for the dualisation of Lokoja-Benin Road Section II: Okene-Auchi (26.70km) in Kogi and Edo States, N10.2bn; Contract No. 6137 for the dualisation of Lokoja-Benin Road Section III: Auchi-Ehor (29.20km) in Edo State, N23.2bn; Contract No. 6138 for the dualisation of Lokoja-Benin Road Section IV: Ehor-Benin (47.70km) in Edo State, N23.6bn; Contract No. 6241 for the reconstruction and asphalt overlay of Benin-Ofosu-Ore-Ajebandele-Shagamu dual carriageway Phase IV: Ajebandele-Shagamu KM162+586 (Ondo State to KM 261+000 (Ogun) in Ogun State, N71.7bn.
On October 8, a sum of N1.1bn was approved for two locomotives for new standard gauge rail lines across the country, while N2.7bn was approved on October 15 for the rehabilitation of some major roads located at Garki and Wuse Districts of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.
On October 22, the FEC approved N165bn for the construction of the East-West Road, Section V (Oron-Calabar), Phase One in Akwa Ibom/Cross River State.
Also on October 22, N24bn was approved as revised estimated total cost of the East-West Road, Sections 1&2; N3.5bn for the supply and installation of a full jet fighter simulator (5000 series B737) for Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos; N106m for the supervision of the construction of Calabar-Oban-Nsan-Ajasor Road (section 1) in Cross River; another N106m for the supervision of the construction of the Mbaise Rind Road intersecting Owerri-Umahia Road in Imo State; N150m for the contract for the appointment of a transaction adviser for the rehabilitation of independence building for the National Trade & International Business Centre, Lagos; and N132m for the purchase of a zone office building for the Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission in Imo State.
On November 5, $945m loan (N175 billion) for flood control, irrigation management and water projects. Of the credit facility sought from the International Development Association, $495m was for irrigation management in the country, $200m for flood control in Ibadan metropolis and $250m for the proposed urban water project in Rivers, Enugu and Ekiti States. Also approved then were N9.067bn for the construction of Calabar-Oban-Nsan-Okoroba-Alassor Road in Cross River; N6.2bn for the construction of Mbaise Ring Road in Niger Delta; N3.6bn for Phase One of Mbak Mkpeti-Itu-Arochukwu Road in Niger Delta; and N3.246bn for Mbak Atai-Ikot-Ntu-Mkpeti-Okuiboku Road in Akwa Ibom.
On November 12, there was the FEC approved N44bn for the extension of Inner Southern Expressway from Southern Parkway to Ring Road II in Abuja; N7.2bn for the construction of one service carriageway (14km) of Inner Expressway (INEX) from Ring Road III to Ring Road IV, Abuja Industrial Park; N1.8bn for the provision of access road and engineering infrastructure to Plot 1458 and adjourning plots around Hot FM Radio Station at Gudu District; N44bn for the upgrading of 15km of the East-West Road Section III: Port Harcourt (From Eleme Junction to Onne Port Junction) in Rivers State; N1bn for Molete Water Works Project in Kwara State; and N383m for consultancy services of the construction of Nigeria’s Cultural Centre & Millennium Tower Project in Abuja.
On November 19, the council approved N273m for consultancy services of the feasibility study and conceptual design of Lots 4, 5 and 6 of the Abuja Rail Mass Transit Network, while on November 26, a sum of N60.9bn was approved for the provision of engineering infrastructure to Kyami District, Zone C in Abuja and another N9.2bn for the purchase of cooking stoves and wonder bags for women.
On December 3, a sum of N430.5bn was approved for the construction and rehabilitation of 17 strategic highways and bridges across the 14 states of Borno, Yobe, Gombe, Rivers, Bayelsa, Delta, Enugu, Nasarawa, Abia, Niger, Kogi, Cross River, Lagos and Kaduna. The breakdown of the amounts was as follows: Rivers, N1206bn; Bayelsa, N26.4bn; Delta, N64.8bn; Delta, N47.9bn; Enugu, N32.3bn; Abia and Rivers, N34bn; Ogun, N100bn; Niger, N17.5bn; Bridge in Cross River, N6.5bn; Yobe and Borno, N8.1bn; Kaduna and Zamfara, N15.6bn; Nasarawa, N14.2bn; Benue, N9.9bn; Kogi, N7.4bn; Gombe, N7.2bn; Cross River, N7bn; also Cross River, N9bn).
The projects include the Bodo-Bonny Road in Rivers State with 3 major bridges across Afa Creek, Opobo Channel and Nanabie Creek; Ikom Bridge in Cross River State; the Agae-Katchia-Baro Road in Niger State; the Ikorodu-Shagamu Road in Lagos, Aba-Port Harcourt and Enugu-Lokpanta sections of the Enugu-Port Harcourt expressway; the Damaturu-Biu Road and the Gombe-Kaltungo Section of Gombe-Numan-Yola Road.
Also on December 3, a sum of N1.2bn was approved as variation cost of the construction of Gbaregolor-Ogriagbere Road in Delta State; and another N661m for the East-West Road Section V in Akwa Ibom/Cross Rivers states.
At its last meeting for the year held on December 17, the FEC approved N24.2bn for the rehabilitation of the outstanding section of Onitsha-Enugu Road; N19.8bn for the rehabilitation of Sokoto-Tambuwal-Jega-Birni-Yauri Road; N10.6bn for the rehabilitation of Sokoto-Jega-Kontogora-Makera Road; N3.3bn for the rehabilitation of Vandeikya-Obudu Cattle Ranch Road; N3.8bn for the construction of Inland River Ports in Makurdi, Benue State; N351m for the procurement of insurance cover for assets of the Nigerian College of Aviation Technology (NCAT), Zaria; N200m for the supply of 1,600 drums of NCAT; and $59.690m (an equivalent of N11.1bn) for the construction of Berth 21 at Terminal ‘E’ Lagos Ports Complex Apapa, Lagos.
