The Minister of State, Federal Ministry of Works and Housing, Mr Abubakar Aliyu, says the ministry is aware of the condition of the Gombe-Yola road and committed to repair the damaged portion.
Mrs Boade Akinola, Director, Press, Federal Ministry of Works and Housing, disclosed this in a statement in Abuja on Thursday.
The statement quoted Aliyu as acknowledging that the ministry was aware of the condition of the road and had commenced repairs of the damaged portion.
He said the portion had been adequately assessed, redesigned and procurement process completed as an additional work to the subsisting contract for the rehabilitation of the road.
According to him, the bad portion, which is about 11km, sits on clay soil called, black cotton soil, which cannot support traffic.
“The removal and replacement of this black cotton soil was not part of the original contract.
“But approval has been given by the Federal Executive Council (FEC) to augment the contract to include the removal of the black cotton soil and replacement with stones and laterite.
“However, the contractor cannot embark on the removal of this clay until after the rainy season.
“In the interim, the contractor is carrying out palliative works to keep the road passable.
“The contractor is on site working even now,” he said.
The minister of state added that the contract awarded involved massive excavation of the soil and replacement with stones to make the road last long.
He, therefore, appealed to citizens and other road users for their patience and understanding.
“Full reconstruction of the bad section on the road will commence as soon as the rain subsides.
“It needs no restating that President Muhammadu Buhari is committed to alleviating the pains of Nigerians wherever they reside,” Aliyu said. (NAN)
