18 Linkages Roads to UNICAL, others Completed Says, Fashiola

Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, has disclosed that works on 18 of the 43 internal roads within tertiary institutions across the federation, including the University of Calabar, have been completed.

He stated this yesterday during the commissioning and handing over of 1.2 kilometres of road rehabilitation at University of Calabar, Malabo hostel.

Represented by the Controller of Works, Cross River State, Bassey Nsemtie, the minister said it was un-debatable that quality education would be impacted by the quality of infrastructure and the learning environment.

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He said the President Muhammadu Buhari administration had stepped up human capital development for the country to move forward.

Fashola said: “Today, we converge here to hand over an important asset, 1.2 kilometres of road rehabilitation by the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing on behalf of the Federal Government.

“Currently, there are 43 such interventions in internal roads within tertiary institutions across Nigeria and the students are expressing a renewed enthusiasm with regard to attending classes because some defective roads have been restored.

“To date, 18 out of the 43 interventions have been completed and today, we hand over this one in the University of Calabar, Cross River as a critical contribution to support education.”

In appreciation of the initiative, the institution’s Vice Chancellor, Professor Zana Akpagu, commended government for giving a facelift to internal roads 42 years after their construction.

His words: ‘Today (yesterday) is a happy day for me for several reasons. But the most important is the fact that as a student in this very university, I was living in Hall 5, just a stone throw from here. My days of studentship that were in 1978, about 42 years ago. What was here was first tarred 42 years ago and am sure, last year before May, you knew how this road was.

“ By my recording, it is the oldest road in Nigeria with the worse potholes you can think of . So 42 years after, this road was resurfaced and another one to the anatomy department was also tarred. Another section of our Ring Road was also resurfaced. So, my joy knows no bounds.”

Source: Guardian Nigeria