The Federal Executive Council (FEC) on Wednesday approved the proposal for Dangote Construction Company to use cement to build a section of the Lokoja- Obajana-Kabba-Ilorin road.
The Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola disclosed this while briefing State House correspondents on the outcome of the Federal Executive Council meeting in Abuja.
He said the company would be executing the road project in exchange for some tax remissions.
“The memo presented to council for consideration seeks to take benefits of the existing policy and regulation.
“It seeks to take benefits of tax policies, tax laws for the purpose of using them to drive infrastructure development renewal.
“So, we presented a proposal by one of the subsidiary of Dangote group, a construction company, for the construction of a section of Lokoja-Obajana-Kabba-Ilorin road.
“Specifically, the section between Obajana-Kabba Road using cement as demonstrative of how perhaps we should continue to build, going forward in order to reduce maintenance on the road and the company proposing to fund the construction of that section of the road in exchange for some tax remissions,’’ he said.
According to the minister, companies are ordinarily supposed to pay income tax, but there are existing policies in the nation’s laws which enable government to consider and give taxes incentives.
He, therefore, stated that the council’s approval for the construction of the section of the road was meant to address the increasing cases of road accidents occasioned by increased heavy traffic in the area.
“So, is a total economy policy which the Council considered and approved because it gives support to industry.
“It enables us take benefit of our tax law to renew infrastructure at a time where we are realy challenged for resources to finance all our routes.
“It also enables us to save lives by quickly and urgently rebuilding that road so that other commuters who also depend on that road for their livelihood would also benefit from the road,’’ he added.
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