Jelili Gbadamosi
Minister of Works, Dave Umahi, has defended the allocation of federal road projects across the country, saying Senator Adams Oshiomhole had the opportunity to address some of the roads he now complains about while serving as governor of Edo State.
Umahi made the remarks on Friday while inspecting an ongoing road project, in response to Oshiomhole’s allegation that the Federal Ministry of Works was biased in the distribution of road infrastructure.
The senator representing Edo North had claimed that roads linking Benin to Warri, Asaba, Auchi and Okene had been neglected, alleging that the minister lacked a balanced national approach in the execution of federal road projects.
Reacting, Umahi said he would not engage Oshiomhole in a public debate but would instead respond with facts.
“I cannot debate with Oshiomhole; I can only reason with him,” the minister said.
According to him, the Lokoja–Benin–Warri road cited by the senator was awarded in 2018 while Oshiomhole was still governor of Edo State.
Umahi argued that he expected the former governor to have undertaken work on the federal road during his tenure, noting that he executed several federal roads while serving as governor of Ebonyi State without complaining.
“He is my senior in governance, and he is also my senior in the legislature. We served together when I was a deputy governor and he was a governor,” Umahi said.
