Senate on Tuesday urged the Federal Government to provide 300 billion Naira as emergency intervention funds to rehabilitate deplorable roads in Niger State.
The resolution followed a motion moved by the Deputy Chief Whip of the Senate, Senator Aliyu Sabi Abudullahi (Niger North) affirming that all movements from North to South substantially traverse the State.
He said that overloaded trucks and tankers put pressure on the roads thereby devastating to the state of the roads.
Senator Aliyu further alarmed that the only road portion that is substantially motorable is the Mokwa Junction – Bida road which is itself under intense pressure by the heavy-duty haulage activities of trucks and tankers and may not last two years under the current scenario.
The Deputy Chief Whip of the Senate, however, agreed that the blockade had seriously affected economic activities in the country with heavy losses by investors and enterprises.
He called for urgent and emergency measures be put in place to forestall further occurrence while also considering a legislative roundtable on the state of transport infrastructure and institutional strengthening to support the economic diversification efforts and growth of the Nigerian economy.
The senate, however, resolved to Urge the Federal Government to declare a state of emergency on the critical roads in Niger State linking economic corridors in the North, South and direct the Federal Ministry of Works to carry out emergency stabilization of the failed portions of Bida- Lapai- Lambatta road to ease the suffering and rate of accidents and loss of goods and investments on the road.