FERMA Commends Tinubu’s Road Drive, Inspects Projects In Delta

The Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA) has commended the administration of President Bola Tinubu for its renewed investment in road infrastructure, saying the interventions are gradually improving the condition of federal roads across the country.

FERMA also lauded the Minister of Works, David Umahi; Minister of State for Works, Bello Muhammad Goronyo; and its Managing Director, Chukwuemeka Agbasi, for their commitment to improving Nigeria’s road network.

The commendation was made on Wednesday during an inspection of ongoing road maintenance and rehabilitation projects in Delta State by a management team led by the Special Assistant to the FERMA Managing Director, Engr. Dr Emeka Maduagwu.

Maduagwu said the agency remained committed to its mandate of ensuring that federal roads were safe and motorable, adding that the interventions in Delta were aimed at improving connectivity and facilitating the movement of people and goods.

He said the Federal Government had demonstrated the political will required to prioritise road infrastructure.

“What you see today is a clear demonstration of the will of Mr President, which he has shown through his investments in infrastructure and his commitment.

“We are not where we want to be; certainly, we are not where we used to be. The journey is on, the direction is clear, and the destination is well within reach, and we are firmly on course,” Maduagwu said.

He further commended Umahi and Goronyo for their efforts in driving the Federal Government’s infrastructure agenda, while describing Agbasi’s leadership at FERMA as focused and committed.

According to him, the combined efforts of the Ministry of Works and FERMA were translating the administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda into visible improvements on federal roads.

The team first inspected the ongoing construction of FERMA’s office along the Benin-Asaba Expressway, which the agency said was more than 90 per cent complete.

FERMA said the office was designed to provide a conducive working environment for its personnel and promote the effective management of government assets.

The inspection team also visited the 38-kilometre Kwale-Ebedei-Umutu Road, a strategic route connecting communities in Ukwuani and Ndokwa West Local Government Areas.

FERMA’s Federal Roads Maintenance Engineer in Delta State, Kingsley Oshewe, said the agency had undertaken direct-labour rehabilitation of failed sections between kilometres 21+000 and 24+000.

He explained that the work included scarification, removal of failed pavement materials, filling with sharp sand and laterite, compaction, stone-base application, priming and asphalt surfacing.

Oshe said several sections of the road had been successfully restored following the intervention.

The team also inspected the Okumeshi Bridge section at kilometre 15 between Ebedei and Umukuata communities in Ukwuani Local Government Area, where an embankment washout had posed a threat to the road.

Oshe said FERMA constructed a reinforced concrete retaining wall, backfilled the affected area with laterite and protected the embankment with stone pitching to prevent further erosion.

He added that the intervention had restored the road to service and preserved an important link between the affected communities.

Oshe urged residents and motorists to support government efforts by keeping drainage channels around their properties clear and avoiding activities capable of obstructing water flow and causing flooding.

A resident of Umukuata community, Chidimma Moses, commended FERMA for the intervention, saying the area had previously been difficult and unsafe to access.

She said the rehabilitation had improved access to neighbouring communities and other parts of the state.