The Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, says constructing the Loko-Oweto bridge and the Second Niger Bridge demonstrates President Muhammadu Buhari regime’s commitment to infrastructure development.

Mr Fashola said this at the inspection of the completed Loko-Oweto bridge and the linking roads section one and section two in Nasarawa on Tuesday.

According to him, this is another intervention of Mr Buhari’s regime in infrastructure.

He said there was a lot of emotion and excitement about the Second Niger Bridge, but people forgot that it crosses the river Niger and is an East-West crossing linking the east to the west of Nigeria.

“There is also a major river in Nigeria: the River Benue, and that is the North-South crossing, so whilst there is a lot of publicity and excitement about the second Niger bridge. Understandably, perhaps not enough attention has been given to the Loko-Oweto bridge. This is the bridge that crosses the River Benue,” Mr Fashola explained.

The minister added, “The point is that this has been a very defining intervention, and the administration is able to show that we have built two major bridges across the two major rivers in the country connecting people, connecting the country, and facilitating trade.”

According to him, there are over 70km of road linking Benue and Nasarawa. 

“You have 74km of road linking Benue and Nasarawa into the Federal Capital Territory Abuja, so this bridge has been finished,” he said.

Mr Fashola said the bridge had been completed about two years ago but had yet to be opened to traffic because of the connection of the linking roads, which is now substantially finished.

(NAN)