The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, has secured approval of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) to spend N621.2 billion to reconstruct 21 federal roads across the six geopolitical zones of the country.
The approval secured Wednesday, at the FEC, meeting presided over by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo covered 1804.6 kilometres according to the Minister of Works and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola,
It would be recalled that the corporation after its appeal to the Petroleum Tanker Drivers(PTD) of NUPENG to suspend the industrial action scheduled for early this month, held a meeting with stakeholders such as the Petroleum Tanker Drivers (PTD), the National Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO), Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), Federal Ministry of Works, and the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), where bothI the tax agency and the works ministry agreed to allow the NNPC use its tax credit for construction of roads in the country.
Although the volume of the tax credit is currently unknown, the agreement then was predicated on the reported endorsement of the framework for the NNPC’s intervention in critical road rehabilitation under the Federal Government Tax Credit Scheme
The agreement is rooted in the Road Trust Fund Policy in President Muhammadu Buhari’s Executive Order 7 of 2019.
The policy or Tax credit Scheme that was established under FG’s Executive Order 7 of 2019, gives private sector operators an opportunity to fund critical infrastructure with the government.
The federal government had similar agreement with companies like Dangote, MTN and others to use their tax credit for construction of some roads in the country.
Fashola after the FEC meeting said NNPC intervention was strategic under the Federal Government Road Infrastructure and Refreshment Tax Credit Scheme.
He explained that it was under Executive Order 7 that allows the private sector to deploy in advance the taxes they would pay for infrastructure development.
He said nine of the selected projects are in North Central, three in North East, two in North West, two in South East, three in South-South, and two in South West.
The NNPC which has now transmitted to a private company agreed on this to find a lasting solutions to the road network challenges and other lingering issues.
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