The House of Representatives has called for the inclusion of the reconstruction of the bridge connecting the Baruten Local Government Area of Kwara and the Republic of Benin in the 2023 budget estimates.

This followed the adoption of a motion by Mohammed Bio (APC-Kwara) on the house floor on Wednesday in Abuja.

The house urged the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing to act accordingly.

According to him, Chikanda is an international border community in Kwara’s Baruten Local Government Area.

He said the community was connected to the Republic of Benin through a bridge to ease the movement of people and transaction of business and services.

He explained that on August 15, torrential rainfall resulted in a heavy flood, thus pulling down the only bridge connecting the Republic of Benin and Nigeria.

“The flood carted away livestock worth millions of naira, with over 70 farmlands washed away and rendered families homeless in Chikanda community in the LGA,’’ he explained.

The lawmaker stressed the need for urgent intervention by relevant government agencies to reconstruct the bridge connecting the two countries to ease the movement of goods and services.

The house, however, urged the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development and the National Emergency Management Agency to provide relief materials for victims in the affected communities.

The house also mandated the Committees on Emergency and Disaster Preparedness and Legislative Compliance to ensure implementation and report back within eight weeks for further legislative action. 

(NAN)