{"id":121431,"date":"2025-08-14T14:16:13","date_gmt":"2025-08-14T13:16:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pointblanknews.com\/pbn\/?p=121431"},"modified":"2025-08-14T14:16:13","modified_gmt":"2025-08-14T13:16:13","slug":"fg-to-fix-third-mainland-bridge-with-over-%e2%82%a63-trillion-umahi","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pointblanknews.com\/pbn\/exclusive\/fg-to-fix-third-mainland-bridge-with-over-%e2%82%a63-trillion-umahi\/","title":{"rendered":"FG to fix Third Mainland Bridge with Over \u20a63 Trillion \u2013 Umahi"},"content":{"rendered":"
By Oscar Okhifo<\/div>\n
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The Federal Government has again stunned Nigerians with the disclosure that the rehabilitation of Lagos\u2019 Third Mainland Bridge will cost more than \u20a63 trillion.<\/div>\n
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The Minister of Works, David Umahi made the disclosure, noting that structural repairs are estimated at \u20a63.8 trillion, while building an entirely new bridge would require \u20a63.6 trillion.<\/div>\n
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Umahi attributed the massive cost to decades of structural decay, underwater erosion, illegal sand mining, and corrosion, insisting that urgent action was required to prevent a total collapse.<\/div>\n
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\u201cThe underwater problems are compounded by decades of neglect and human activities that have undermined the bridge\u2019s substructure,\u201d Umahi explained. \u201cWe cannot delay. If we decide on rehabilitation, it will require huge resources and specialized engineering. If we opt for a new build, it is slightly less costly but still a massive undertaking.\u201d<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
He said the government was exploring EPC+F (Engineering, Procurement, Construction and Financing) models and public-private partnerships (PPP) to spread the financial load, promising that \u201cspecialist contractors\u201d would be engaged through competitive bidding.<\/div>\n
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\u201cWe have approval for at least seven specialist contractors to carry out detailed investigations, designs and bids for both rehabilitation and new construction under an EPC+F arrangement,\u201d the minister revealed.<\/div>\n
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\u201cA stitch in time saves nine,\u201d he added, warning that further delays could push costs well beyond current estimates.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
But across the country, the announcement has triggered a wave of skepticism and anger. Nigerians have long complained about inflated infrastructure costs, often far higher than comparable projects elsewhere in Africa.<\/div>\n
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During the Buhari era, ministers were repeatedly challenged to public debates over project figures, with critics asking why roads and bridges in Nigeria cost several times more than in countries with the same topography and the same loan sources.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Those concerns, many argue, have not been addressed and are now spilling over into the Tinubu administration.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Civil engineers and economists have pointed to examples like Kenya\u2019s Nairobi Expressway, a 27-kilometre tolled highway built under a PPP model at about $560 million (approx. \u20a6560 billion), a fraction of the Third Mainland rehabilitation estimate. Many probing questions and concerns thrown to Rotimi Amaechi as Buhari’s Minister of Transportation, who was also in charge of rail lines construction across the country are yet to be fully addressed. He is warming up to join the 2027 Presidential race again.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Another example is Ghana\u2019s Tema Motorway expansion and Ethiopia\u2019s road corridor projects that were delivered at significantly lower costs.<\/div>\n
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Nigerians have consistently raised alarms over the cost of aviation\/airports infrastructure maintenance. Those who award or supervise these capital-intensive projects hardly engage Nigerians. They always have their ways.<\/div>\n
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This is not the first time Umahi has faced pushback. Earlier in this administration, Nigerians demanded details of the bidding process and Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, only to be met with what can be described as resistance, unkind words, rude responses, name calling and excess pride from the Works Minister.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Observers now worry that the same opaqueness in contracting that plagued that project is being repeated with the Third Mainland Bridge.<\/div>\n
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Is the Third Mainland Bridge actually a bridge or bottomless pit? This is the critical question reverberating in public discourse. Nigerians are asking whether the bridge is truly so damaged that trillions must be sunk into it, especially when the economy is in free fall, inflation is biting, and millions are struggling with basic needs.<\/div>\n
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For many, the Third Mainland Bridge saga epitomizes how Nigerians feel \u201cruled like conquered people,\u201d excluded from decision-making, saddled with opaque projects, and denied accountability.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
As outrage builds, the larger issue remains whether public opinion will ever cut any ice with the Tinubu administration.<\/div>\n
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\u00a0History suggests otherwise, as governments have often brushed aside concerns in favor of executive decisions.<\/div>\n
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But with the stakes this high, and with distrust of official costings at its peak, the \u20a63 trillion-plus rehabilitation plan may become a new test case for transparency, accountability, and respect for citizens\u2019 voices.<\/div>\n
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For now, Nigerians are watching and waiting. As some\u00a0 put it, time shall tell whether the government will listen to the people, or once again move as if the people do not matter.<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Oscar Okhifo The Federal Government has again stunned Nigerians with the disclosure that the rehabilitation of Lagos\u2019 Third Mainland Bridge will cost more than \u20a63 trillion. 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