FG to immortalise Azikiwe, approves N1.5bn for mausoleum

By BEN AGANDE
ABUJA—The Federal Executive Council Wednesday took a bold step towards immortalising the first president of Nigeria, Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe as it approved N1,496 billion, for the building of a Mausoleum in his honour in Onitsha.

The Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, who briefed newsmen after the meeting of the council on Wednesday said the  President had given his commitment during his visit to Anambra State that   the issue of the Mausoleum would be revisited.

Late Dr. Nnamdi-Azikiwe

Dr Abati who was flanked by the Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Ms. Ama Pepple, and the Minister of Mines and Steel, Mohammed Sada, said the Mausoleum has been an issue since 2006.

He said: “The President during his visit to Anambra State had given his word that the issue will be revisited and that was done today because the country owes it to posterity and the memory of the great Zik to ensure that the mausoleum is built and there is assurance by the Ministry of Lands and Housing that this time around the Mausoleum will be completed”.

The Minister of Housing and Urban development in her contribution said “the Federal Executive Council approved the award of contract for the completion of Zik’s Mausoleum, in memory of our first President. It was given out for a sum of N1,496,531,483 with a completion of 13 months. This contract was originally under the Presidency but it was stalled and had to be cancelled three times, but in 2010 it was transferred to the new Ministry of Housing and Urban Development.

She added  that they were confident that the contractors would carry out the work competently and finish within the 13 months given to them.

She said the funds for the project had been split into the 2012 and 2013 budget. “In this year’s budget we have N530million with which we are going to start off the project and we have also put N1billion in the budget for next year and if that is given to us we should be able to complete it within the time stipulated. So we are very hopeful that we will get the needed funds and the ministry is quite ready to ensure that we get value for money for the job that we are giving out” she said.

Speaking on the approved roadmap of the mining sector, Sade said the document was to awaken “ourselves to the various governmental policies to work on and targets to achieve”.

According to him the reforms which started in 2005, yielded nothing, but had started showing prospects from 2007.

The minister who said this was the first time Nigeria was having a roadmap for the mining sector added that the foreword for the roadmap was written by the President himself.

He said government had also given incentives to encourage investors in the sector, stating that mining equipment brought into the country will be duty free.