Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, has warned state governments against intervention on federal roads without due approval by the Federal Government.
Fashola gave the warning while inspecting ongoing federal projects in the Southeast on Saturday in Abakiliki, the Ebonyi State capital.
He said the warning became necessary following the huge debts inherited by the Federal Government, even as he stressed the need to forestall such.
The minister called on state governments wishing to intervene on federal roads to ensure that due approval and permission were granted by the Federal Government.
“For anybody who wants to intervene on federal roads, you must first ask for permission and if you don’t do so, you have broken the law.
“You cannot break the law to please people. We understand that your citizens need the roads, but you cannot do evil to please them,” he said.
He said such practice was unacceptable and that to intervene on federal roads, “you must apply to us, we must see the standard and then refer it to Mr. President-in-council.
“So, I am using this opportunity to repeat that no state government should intervene on federal roads until we have finished payment of the debts we inherited.”
He added that even if a state government does not want to be reimbursed, it must still seek approval, adding that the application for such intervention must categorically state so.
Fashola said the Federal Government was awaiting legislation and debt financing approvals to authorise payment of the refund to state governments that executed federal projects.
He said the federal government had, through a committee constituted by President Muhammadu Buhari, concluded the process of collating claims of various state governments.
