By Shehu Galadinma

It is a no brainer that the Ministry of Works is perhaps the most important portfolio in the Nigerian government cabinet – of course after the petroleum ministry. This is because the country is still struggling to diversify its economy still heavily dependent on delivering raw crude to other parts of the world in this age and time. Again, this in turn not only generates major focus on the petroleum ministry, but explains why Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo, Buhari and now Bola Tinubu, appointed themselves to head it. But in terms of other ministries not directly overseen by the President, the Federal Ministry of Works clearly trumps others, or so it seems.

The works ministry is so important because it is the public institution which easily showcases government in action. Yes, one of the yardsticks for the assessment of the performance of any government since the return of civil rule in 1999 is the measure of democracy dividends received by the people. And conceptually, these democratic dividends can be tangible and intangible. The tangible dividends, are however, more important because they are not only felt by citizens but more importantly can be seen and verified. The most important of these dividends are the provision of good roads and bridges across the length and breadth of the vast country of ours. So it is quite simple to assess a particular government by assessing the quality and number of motorable roads and bridges constructed by the minister of works and more importantly the cost of doing them.

What this means in practical terms is that a particular president may be already writing his scorecard by the singular choice of his appointment of minister of works! This is even more so in a country with dizzying infrastructure deficits arising from many years of bad governance and corruption. Since 1999, past presidents have not paid attention to the critical role of the works ministry in delivering democracy dividends to the people and improving the economy through the provision of basic infrastructure of linking the country with motorable roads.

Sadly, as we witnessed in the past, the works ministry was handed over as an election booty to trusted political allies without any requisite engineering qualifications as mere compensations to the detriment to the entire country. But that is not the case with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. The president gave a hint even while campaigning for office that infrastructure renewal across the country was going to be at the heart of his government programmes. As an astute politician, especially one that had successfully governed perhaps the most important state in the country before, President Tinubu understood that the choice of his works minister will send the clear message of his vision on road infrastructure in the morning of his administration.

This explains why the choice of the former governor of Ebonyi State, Senator David Umahi, a brilliant engineer, was cheered nationwide as perhaps the best appointment made by President Tinubu so far. Even members of the Senate to which Umahi belonged before his appointment were grinning from ear to ear eulogizing the President for an appointment they described with other Nigerians as “a round peg in a round hole.”

It is not surprising though that Umahi’s appointment as minister of works has been applauded nationwide. As the Governor of Ebonyi State, Dave Umahi did his best in transforming what was basically a rural state to an urban setting in a manner even his political traducers cannot deny. In the entire Southeast, Umahi easily distinguished himself as the best governor in terms of road constructions and other infrastructural development. In a performance based assessment Report of all the Southeast governors who left office on May 29, 2023, Ikengaonline, an accountability newspaper focused on the South-East region wrote thus of Governor Dave Umahi: “His administration embarked on the construction of several roads, flyovers, and bridges all across the state, linking previously inaccessible areas and enhancing transportation networks. Ebonyi State government also partnered with the African Development Bank in the construction of the 198-kilometer Abakaliki Ring Road project, connecting about eight LGAs of the state.

“Governor Umahi also embarked on many other projects, including the reconstruction of an International Market, one of its kind in Nigeria, an Ecumenical Centre, and the reconstruction of Abakaliki Township Stadium. His government also built from scratch the King David University of Medical Sciences in Uburu and recently inaugurated the Ebonyi International Airport.”

It is heartwarming to note that so far as minister, Engineer David Umahi has put his strongest foot forward in the performance of his duties. As a strict disciplinarian, his first day in office started with action leading to the lock out of many staff who reported to office late, a situation he made clear he would going forward, not condone. However, his relationship with his staff has been more than cordial leading to greater productivity.

Again from the first day in office Umahi clearly understood his brief and policy trajectory as minister in charge of works. With a solid background in civil engineering he would not be bamboozled by unpatriotic contractors only seeking to make money even if the citizens suffer or are shortchanged. The minister’s argument and insistence to introduce reinforced concrete pavement roads, dumping the more popular asphalt road remain compelling especially with our history of road collapses and paucity of resources. Again Umahi wasted no time to read the riot act to contractors and also letting them know he knew all the tricks in the books. For example, in March 2024, he ordered supervising engineers in his ministry to issue a warning letter to Levant Construction Company, the contractors handling the Benin/Sapele and Ologbo road if it failed to comply with the scope and specification of the work, and even threatened to terminate the multi-billion naira contract.

Indeed Umahi has reintroduced discipline, accountability and seriousness in the execution of federal contracts. The era in which contractors defrauded the government and the people by either absconding from site after collecting mobilization fees or doing shoddy or substandard jobs is over and all thanks to Umahi’s strict monitoring and supervision to the last Kobo.

Meanwhile, under Umahi federal roads and highways are receiving the desired attention simultaneously across the country even with dwindling national revenue to make life easier for our people. Some of the ongoing federal highway projects include the Abuja-Lokoja Road, Abuja-Kaduna-Zaria-Kano, East-West Road, Enugu-Port-Harcourt, Benin-Warri Road and Akure-Ado-Ekiti Road.

What is more, despite the initial hiccups, the coastal highway, the first of its kind in our country has begun in earnest, gathering a welcome momentum. The Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway is a 700-kilometer project, expected to run from Victoria Island, Lagos, to Calabar, Cross River State, passing through several states, including Ogun, Ondo, Delta, Bayelsa, Rivers, and Akwa Ibom. Not only will the ambitious project improve connectivity, but will according to Umahi also enhance economic prosperity of the Nigerian people by promoting tourism, industrial clusters including hotels, factories, and housing estates.

It must also be pointed out that Umahi as minister has admirably created a convivial relationship between the Federal Government and the states in dealing with the contentious issue of “federal roads.” Unlike in the past where the relationship was characterized by crass mischief and misunderstanding, Umahi has stamped his diplomatic and negotiating skills on the matter of cooperating with the states on fixing federal roads for the good of the suffering masses. In so doing, the minister with his sincerity is effortlessly winning friends to his boss especially from the opposition states. And this virtue is not likely to escape the watchful eyes of Mr President.

It is sad to observe that not many ministers in President Tinubu’s cabinet are pulling their weights in terms of posting good performances. This situation has prompted demand on the President to reshuffle his cabinet to make it more effective and efficient in serving the people. On the contrary, Minister Dave Umahi since his appointment has been hitting the right notes. He has further justified the call to appoint only people with requisite knowledge and experience in specialized areas as ministers. In about one year in office, Umahi is proving that what he did in Ebonyi in terms of infrastructural development was no fluke.

However, while Umahi deserves his flowers for the good performance so far in office, the praises should go to President Tinubu who scouted him out and insisted on competency in choosing his minister in the high profile ministry of works – even if it means appointing someone from a geopolitical zone not entirely warmed up to him politically.

Shehu Galadinma, a public affair analyst wrote from Abuja