The Minister of Works, Power and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola, has restated his commitment to serve the government and people of Lagos in accordance with necessary due process.
Fashola said this in a statement issued in Abuja on Friday by Mr Hakeem Bello, his Special Adviser on Communication.
The minister also pledged to treat the request of the state on merit just as would be done to other states.
Fashola was reacting to statements credited to Governor Akinwumi Ambode of Lagos State that the “Federal Ministry of Works” was frustrating the efforts of his administration to carry out a “total reconstruction of the International Airport Road from Oshodi’’.
The governor had also accused the ministry and security services of denying the state government access to the Presidential Lodge in Lagos, six months after approval was granted by the President.
According to Fashola, his response is to ensure that members of the public are not misled by deliberate or inadvertent statements.
He said the allegations of lack of cooperation from the Ministry and frustration of Lagos State Government development initiatives were not true.
Fashola said that the ministry had in 2016, approved the use of the Federal Ministry of Works yard at Oworonsoki by Lagos State Government to create a lay-by to ease traffic.
He said Lagos State was granted rights to manage the Street Lighting on the 3rd Mainland Bridge to support the security initiatives of the state.
Fashola said in the same year, the ministry also supported approval of the World Bank Loan of 200 million dollars to the state, a request the previous administration had denied the state.
“For the International Airport Road, the correct position is that the Lagos State Government presented a request for four roads that it would wish to take over.
“This is consistent with the position being canvassed by the minister for states that are interested to apply to take over roads that are within their states.
“The ministry has presented the memorandum conveying the request of the state to the Federal Executive Council (FEC) as was done with a similar request by the Kaduna State Government in 2016,” he said.
He said FEC could not reach an immediate decision due to the fact that two of the roads also connect Ogun State and so, requested for the input of Ogun State Government.
Fashola stated that the Presidential Lodge was under the management of the presidency and not the ministry.
He said a directive was issued to the ministry to work out modalities for the handing over after approval by the president.
Fashola said the ministry had prepared a vesting instrument to convey the transfer, stating that the Presidential Lodge was a high security location.
He said access to the lodge was not under the control of the ministry, noting that officials of the ministry also required security clearance to enter the lodge for any work.
“If there is any lack of co-operation, it is on the part of the state government that has refused to approve the ministry’s request for Land for the National Housing Programme in Lagos.’’ (NAN)