The federal government, on Wednesday, inaugurated Musa Babayo as the new chairman of the board of the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA), charging him to deliver safer roads.

The minister of state for works, Bello Goronyo, while inaugurating the chairman in Abuja, emphasised that the appointment was a strategic move to strengthen the nation’s road maintenance framework.

According to Mr Goronyo, the appointment reflects the administration’s unwavering commitment to safe, reliable, and durable road networks across Nigeria.

This, he said, was in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Tinubu, which placed infrastructure at the heart of national transformation.

He said: “FERMA is the lifeblood of our transport system. Our roads connect farms to markets, factories to ports, and communities to opportunities.

“Their integrity is vital — delays in maintenance are not just inconvenient, they are costly to our economy and dangerous to our people.”

Mr Goronyo said that under the Renewed Hope Agenda, infrastructure was not merely about roads and bridges, adding, “it is about unlocking prosperity, reducing poverty, and ensuring that every Nigerian has access to opportunities.”

He said that Mr Babayo has a proven professional and dedicated public servant history at the Education Trust Fund (ETF) and later at TETFund, strengthening Nigeria’s educational infrastructure, while his humanitarian contributions have touched countless lives.

He said his track record of transparency, excellence, and national service was an assurance that he has the capacity to lead FERMA into a new era of efficiency and performance,” he said.

The minister said that the president’s confidence in his abilities was total, adding that the nation now looks to him to translate the confidence into tangible, verifiable results on the ground.

“Your call to action is clear: Accelerated, proactive maintenance of federal roads, ensuring that our highways reflect the Renewed Hope Agenda’s vision of modern, resilient infrastructure.

“Judicious and transparent use of every naira allocated, with zero tolerance for waste, so that resources directly translate into improved road networks for Nigerians.

“Strong collaboration with the Ministry of Works, National Assembly, and state governments, ensuring that FERMA’s work complements the broader infrastructure drive of the Renewed Hope Agenda,” the minister added.

Goronyo urged the board to function as a cohesive strategic unit, providing effective oversight, guidance, and policy direction to the management team and uphold the oath taken and serve with distinction.

Also speaking, the permanent secretary of the federal ministry of works, Olufunso Adebiyi, said 99 per cent of Nigeria’s transportation activities depended on roads.

He said, “So, when we are even fixing the roads, the road is still busy. The activities are still high.

“So, it is important for us to know that we are in for a serious time. Putting these roads in order is a responsibility bestowed on our shoulders.

“I believe that the inauguration of this board today is going to jack us up, to wake us up to our responsibility and be more determined more than ever.”

The new chairman of the board of FERMA commended the federal government for the privilege.

Mr Babayo said, “My professional centre of gravity basically is governance, trust fund management and policy coordination.

He vowed, “This is a tripod which guided my stewardship for six and a half to seven years as the chairman of the Education Trust Fund.

“In order to make this organisation one of Nigeria’s export grants, we will try hard work jointly and under the leadership of the honourable ministers to make FERMA the Nigerian agency of choice.

“We shall deploy as much as we can, subject to the availability of financial resources, bring innovations, and make significant investments in technology through sustainable funding.

“The combined effects of these measures will produce one single result. It will allow the engineers, the contractors to deliver, and Nigerian citizens will be happy with the performance of our government.”

(NAN)