FG begins monitoring of 2,399 constituency projects

The Minister of Special Duties and Inter Governmental Affairs, Alhaji Kabiru Turaki, said this at the launch of the 2013 exercise

 The Federal Government on Friday began the monitoring and evaluation exercise of the 2,399 constituency projects nationwide.
The Minister of Special Duties and Inter Governmental Affairs, Alhaji Kabiru Turaki, said this at the launch of the 2013 exercise.
Turaki said the monitoring would also cover other constituency projects in 2012.
He said the exercise would be carried out in phases, adding that the first phase would cover 24 states and the Federal Capital Territory.
The FCT projects, he said, were located in Kubwa, Bwari Area Council.
He said: “The ministry has dispatched its officials to some states for the purpose of undertaking on the spot assessment of the actual status of the implementation of the zonal intervention projects.
“The monitoring teams apart from assessing the level of implementation of the projects will also interact with the communities, the key beneficiaries of the projects to ascertain their views on the implementation.
“The constituency projects are projects initiated by members of the National Assembly for the development of their constituencies and these projects are funded from the Federal Government annual budget.
“Records indicate that some of these projects date as far back as 2006, but for this year, a total of 2,399 constituency projects are captured in the Federal Government’s 2013 Appropriation Act.
“The site we are today is the provision of infrastructure to Kubwa satellite town, a project jointly sponsored by the senator and all members of House representing the FCT constituencies at the House of Representative.”
The minister said no excuse would be accepted from any implementing agency with relation to non-implementation of any project to ensure that Nigerians and the government gets value for their money.
“These is not the era where any constituency project will be allowed to be abandoned because there has been clear funding for the 114 implementation MDAs chosen by NASS,” Turaki said.
Earlier, the Minister of State for the FCT, Oloye Olajumoke Akinjide, said the project was under the Satellite Town Development Agency for the provision of infrastructure for Kubwa satellite town District IV and V.
Akinjide said the project was awarded to Setraco Construction Company in 2007 for N42.6 billion.
She said the scope of the project included road walks, storm water drains, water supply, power supply and street lighting.
She said only 55 per cent completion had been achieved due to lack of funds, adding that this was why the senator and House of Representatives members combined their money.
Akinjide said: “If you have a project that has been on for six years without completion, it clearly shows that there is a difficulty with funding.
“So, the National Assembly members did a patriotic thing by deciding to complete this project rather than start a new one.
“They brought together the sum of N1 billion so as to help in the fast completion of the project and today we have made a headway.