Lagos-Badagry Expressway, Not Abandoned Project -­ Rep

Rep. Babatunde Hunpe (APC), representing Badagry Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, says the ongoing rehabilitation of Lagos-Badagry Expressway has not been abandoned by the Federal Government.

Hunpe made the clarification on Monday at a three-day Entrepreneurship Development Training Programme, organised by the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) in Badagry.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the programme was sponsored by the lawmaker.

Hunpe said that the Minister of Works and Housing, Mr Raji Fashola, had assured him that the delay being experienced on the project was as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“If not because of this pandemic, the project would have approached Badagry Round about by now.

“Within this period of the pandemic, two things have happened.

“Apart from the over N1 billion approved for the project in 2020, the government, through the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing, had allocated the sum of ₦4.5 billion for handling of the road project.

“If the contractor gets to the site today, nothing is stopping them now, because the money is available; we are only waiting for them,” the lawmaker said.

Hunpe noted that the Director of Works, in charge of South-West, had assured him that approval had been given for the removal of electric poles on the road.

The lawmaker said that the second palliative on the road would soon be approved.

According to him, the entrepreneurship training programme is meant to educate participants on how to trade with small capital to become bigger.

“If you think big, you can start small and later make it big. That is where we are here.

“I have planned this programme for 129 residents of the town.

“As we can see, we have youth representatives, market women and men’s representatives and Community Development Area representatives.

“At the end of the training, some amount of money will be given to the participants to upgrade their businesses,” Hunpe said.

He commended Sen. Olamilekan Solomon, the Senator representing Lagos-West, for his support toward the training programme.

Speaking at the programme, Mr Joseph Agoro, an APC chieftain in Badagry, commended the lawmaker for using his office to bring good things to Badagry residents.

Agoro said that the lawmaker had facilitated the construction of the Healthcare Centre in Olorunda Local Council Development Area and the renovation of another healthcare centre in Farasinmi, Badagry-West LCDA.

He said that Hunpe had also brought and installed an electricity transformer to the people of Kweme, who had not been connected to the national grid for long.

Also, Mrs Oluwatosin Abajo, the Principal Enterprise Officer, SMEDAN, urged participants at the training to make good use of the experience gained from the three days programme.

Abajo told the participants that they have a lot to gain from the programme, saying that they would not regret being part of the training.

NAN