…FG Reopens First Niger Bridge, Intensifies Rehabilitation and Safety Measures
The Minister of Works, Senator Engr. David Umahi, has announced the return of the Benin-Asaba Road to the Federal Ministry of Works, disclosing that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has ordered the comprehensive redesign and reconstruction of the 136-kilometre highway as a dual carriageway.
Umahi made the announcement on Thursday, October 15, 2026, during the reopening of the First Niger Bridge along the Asaba-Onitsha Road, where he also outlined ongoing rehabilitation works and safety measures to protect the strategic transport infrastructure.
The Minister said the return of the Benin-Asaba Road to the Ministry followed the removal of the concession arrangement that had prevented the Federal Government from directly undertaking its reconstruction.
“What stopped the Ministry of Works from reconstructing Benin-Asaba Road, the concessioning of that route, has been unsealed. We now have our route back to the Ministry of Works,” Umahi declared.
He explained that President Tinubu had directed the total redesign of the 136-kilometre road as a dual carriageway, adding that the design process was underway and construction would begin upon its completion.
“The legacy of President Bola Tinubu, you will see it ongoing on this road. Never again will our people suffer on this road,” he assured.
The Minister expressed optimism that the intervention would address the longstanding difficulties experienced by motorists travelling between the South-South and South-East, while improving connectivity, trade and economic activities across the regions.
At the reopening of the First Niger Bridge, Umahi said the Federal Government had undertaken rehabilitation and safety improvement works to preserve the structural integrity of the bridge and protect road users.
He disclosed that the Ministry intervened after a content creator alerted the government to suspicious activities around the bridge. Subsequent inspection reportedly revealed that some individuals were removing bolts and cutting iron components from its steel structure.
The Minister described the activities as dangerous, warning that the removal of structural components could undermine the bridge's integrity and potentially lead to a collapse.
He recalled that the bridge was commissioned in 1966 by Nigeria's then Prime Minister, Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, noting that inadequate maintenance over the years had made sustained rehabilitation necessary.
According to him, the ongoing intervention includes asphalt resurfacing and median demarcation, similar to the rehabilitation measures implemented on Lagos' Third Mainland Bridge.
He explained that the median demarcation was necessary to regulate traffic and prevent prolonged static loading on sections of the bridge not designed to withstand such pressure indefinitely.
Additional safety measures include the installation of CCTV cameras, solar-powered lighting and observation centres at both ends of the bridge. Security personnel will use the facilities to monitor activities on and beneath the structure.
The Ministry has also created three turnaround passages to enable motorists to manoeuvre safely when vehicles break down.
“Exactly the treatment we gave to the Third Mainland Bridge is the treatment we gave to this place,” Umahi said.
He commended the contractor, SKCC, for its work but clarified that the rehabilitation was not yet fully completed.
Outstanding works, he said, include repainting the entire steel structure, completing the treatment of rust-affected areas beneath the bridge deck, installing CCTV cameras above and below the bridge, and providing canopies at both ends.
The Minister issued a stern warning against illegal sand dredging around bridges, reminding the Federal Ministry of Works' directors in Delta and Anambra States that federal regulations prohibit dredging within a 10-kilometre radius of bridges.
He directed the state directors to report any failure by security agencies to enforce the regulations and warned that disciplinary measures would follow if the illegal practice continued.
Umahi stressed that protecting bridges required strict enforcement of safety regulations and cooperation among relevant government agencies and security personnel.
Beyond the Benin-Asaba Road and First Niger Bridge, Umahi highlighted several major infrastructure projects across the South-East and South-South, describing them as evidence of the Tinubu administration's commitment to national development.
He disclosed that the President had directed the reconstruction of approximately 400 kilometres of the East-West Road, which traverses the Niger Delta from the Benin axis through the South-South to Cross River State.
The project, he explained, would serve as a spur of the 750-kilometre Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway.
Umahi dismissed suggestions that the East-West Road was a South-East project, insisting that the highway was entirely within the Niger Delta.
“Some people thought that the East-West Road was a road in the South-East, and they started talking, trying to intentionally impinge the South-South brothers with the South-East brothers. East-West Road is entirely in the Niger Delta,” he said.
He also dismissed claims that construction on the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway had stopped, maintaining that work was continuing and that the remaining sections in Bayelsa and Cross River would be taken up in the coming weeks.
“The coastal road is the right of the Niger Delta people. And the President will complete that 750-kilometre road. And they will also complete the SPP, which is the full reconstruction of 400 kilometres of East-West Road,” the Minister declared.
He added that the designs for the first and second sections of the East-West Road were nearing completion, with construction expected to commence soon.
Providing updates on other projects, Umahi said reconstruction work on the Enugu-Port Harcourt corridor had reached approximately 90 per cent completion.
He also highlighted the ongoing reconstruction of a 44-kilometre section in Port Harcourt using reinforced concrete pavement, a construction method the Ministry has adopted on selected highways to improve durability.
In Anambra State, the Minister announced the introduction of reinforced concrete pavement on another major road project.
He said the 107-kilometre dual carriageway project had recorded progress, with 33 kilometres completed, while work on the remaining 40-kilometre section from the First Niger Bridge axis was expected to begin within two weeks.
Umahi further cited the ongoing construction of Section 2B of the Second Niger Bridge bypass, a 17.5-kilometre project valued at ₦172 billion, as another major infrastructure investment in the region.
“These are projects that show the President’s commitment to the South-East. We cannot thank the President enough,” he said.
The Minister maintained that the projects reflected the Federal Government's effort to integrate the South-East and South-South into its broader infrastructure development programme.
Umahi also defended the use of reinforced concrete pavement on selected highways, saying the approach was intended to produce durable roads capable of serving Nigerians for decades.
To illustrate the quality and smoothness of the roads being constructed, he recounted an anecdote about a pilot who reportedly mistook a newly constructed road for an aircraft runway.
He said the incident demonstrated the quality of infrastructure being delivered under the current administration.
Addressing criticism of the President's economic reforms, Umahi argued that the policies were necessary to avert a deeper economic crisis and establish a foundation for long-term recovery.
“When you have a wound and you have to stitch the wound, there will be pains at the initial time, but that pain is the beginning of healing,” he said.
“The worse is over. We are now into prosperity. We are into prosperity.”
He challenged critics to offer practical alternatives to the administration's policies rather than resort to insults and hate speech.
According to him, Nigerians should assess the reforms by examining the country's economic indicators and the overall direction of the economy.
“The President saved this country from catastrophic economy,” Umahi declared, insisting that the administration had taken difficult decisions in the national interest rather than for immediate political applause.
He, however, acknowledged the importance of translating economic improvements into better living conditions for ordinary Nigerians, particularly households and small businesses.
Turning to the political debate ahead of the 2027 presidential election, the Minister defended the right of political leaders and citizens to make independent electoral choices, rejecting the suggestion that supporting President Tinubu amounted to betraying the South-East.
He questioned why some people expected the entire region to support only one presidential candidate when candidates themselves were seeking votes across the country.
“Why is Peter Obi looking for votes in the South-West? Why is he looking for votes in the North? So people from the South-East must support only one person? When did we come together and say that all the people from the South-East will support Peter Obi?” he asked.
Umahi urged political leaders, stakeholders and influential voices in the region to educate young people on the relationship between democracy, infrastructure and development.
He argued that the South-East's electoral choices should be guided by the interests and developmental needs of its people rather than regional sentiments.
“Let me tell the people of the South-East, it is what you vote in January 2027 that is our right to brag. That is our right to negotiate. Let us not be very funny. Let us not be very sentimental. Let us stop the hate speeches and embrace the new wave of hope,” he said.
The Minister maintained that the region's participation in the electoral process was essential to its ability to negotiate for further infrastructure investment and other development opportunities.
“Democracy is about development. It is about infrastructure. It is about inclusiveness. The President has done that,” he said.
“And we are here in the South-East to declare that the South-East is for President Bola Tinubu.”
Umahi concluded by describing Tinubu as a leader whose infrastructure programme, in his view, demonstrated a commitment to national inclusion beyond ethnic and regional considerations.
“The evidence of what we are doing today is a total testimony that President Bola Tinubu is a detribalised Nigerian,” he said.
The statement was issued by Francis Nwaze, Senior Special Assistant to the Honourable Minister of Works on Media.
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