FG spends N60bn in water-related constituency projects

Mr Lasun Yusuf, the Deputy Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Water Resources, said on Thursday that the Federal Government had spent more than N60 billion on water-related projects across the country this year.

Yusuf said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria in Sokoto on the sideline of the committee’s oversight visit in the state.

He said about N100 billion was earmarked for constituency projects in 2013, adding that the projects were located in the 360 federal constituencies nationwide.

“These projects include the provisions of motorized bore holes and their accessories, open-dug wells and tube wells, among others.

“Over N60 billion out of the N100 billion earmarked for the constituency projects this year had been invested in the provision of these dividends of democracy to the populace.”

Yusuf said that the National Assembly attached priority to the provision of potable water and irrigation facilities across the country.

“The National Assembly appreciates the importance of water in the society, for domestic use and food production.

“We are here to visit the projects of the Sokoto Rima River Basin Development Authority as part of our oversight functions.”

He said that one of the projects visited by the committee in the state included the completed rehabilitation of the emergency spillway at Goronyo dam.

”The spillway was destroyed by the September, 2010 flood.

“The project cost N2 billion and it had been successfully completed.

“We are also here to see how the electromechanical aspects of the spillway and the gates of the dam can be made functional.”

The lawmaker said that the gesture was to prevent the recurrence of flood in state.

“We are satisfied with what we have seen and we will make the appropriate recommendations to further boost the economic activities of the authority,” Yusuf said.