Following calls that the Federal Road Maintenance Agency, FERMA, should be scrapped, its Acting Managing Director/CEO, Engr Peter Mbu has explained that series of financial challenges were responsible for the agency’s inability to meet up with their mandates of road maintenance across the nation in 2016.
Speaking during the 2017 budget defence at the National Assembly, Abuja, the road maintenance boss stressed that they lack trained accounts staff to handle TSA and the need to satisfy certain requirements to secure sub-TSA accounts for field offices. He added that the agency was almost grounded in 2016 because of difficulty in accessing funds appropriated to it as well as delay in budgetary approval which took off in May last year.
“Distinguished Senators, Hon. Members, challenges posed by newly introduced zero-base budget process and TSA policy, difficulties in accessing funds directly appropriated for direct Labour and delay in budget approval which took off in May last year were factors that hamper our activities,” Mbu explained.
Giving an overview of the budget performance, Mbu noted that out of N40,195,162,254.00 appropriated for 2016, only N2,244,450,976.04 was disbursed, hence, it was 31.93% performance.
Earlier in his opening address, Senate Committee Chairman on FERMA, Senator Magnus Abe decrying state of Nigerian roads, noted that due to lack of maintenance, some roads have become unmotorable.
He said though the inability of the agency to carry out its activities may not be entirely their fault, the management still have challenges in sincerity and honesty in discharging their duties, stressing that they should stand up to save the face of the agency from total collapse.
“It may not be your fault entirely for not performing, vis-a-vis funding challenges, but there are also challenges of sincerity and honesty,” Abe added.
The Chairman promised to closely work for adequate funding of the agency, while asking the management to have a clear cut expectation for the year.
“Lets say that we like to hear and understand the expectation of FERMA for 2017, believing that if we work together, we will be able to change narratives of the agency,” he maintained.
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