Zik of Africa’s Mausoleum Bounces Back AFTER years of four failed attempts at building a befitting rest place for the first Nigerian President, late Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, the matter is coming to a head as work has finally begun at the proposed mausoleum. At least, with the work going on at the site, it may not be long before the official opening ceremony will become a prominent agenda on the schedule of government. Situated at Onitsha in Anambra State, the project has taken on life and the hope of completion is in view courtesy the flow of presidential favour from ‘Aso Rock,’ where President Jonathan holds sway. Really, it has been commendations for the president for backing words with action. The contract was re-awarded to a French construction firm, Boygues Construction Company, and it is to be completed in 13 months. The company is reportedly chosen due to its competence and technical expertise. The Federal Ministry of Housing and Urban Development is coordinating the project. A representative of the ministry, Mrs. Pat Odogwu, says the Federal Government (FG) is eager to deliver the mausoleum because, ‘it’s long overdue.’ The ministry urged the contractor to ensure timely delivering. “This project is important to the federal government, especially when we look at the importance and great influence late Zik had all over Africa. We want to deliver on this project within 13 months and be assured that the ministry will not lag behind in the area of funding,” she said. The Guardian gathered that Boygues has worked and delivered on several contracts in the country. The company prides itself for constructing the United Bank of Nigeria (UBA) headquarters in Marina, Lagos, Supreme Court building in Abuja; Nigerian Breweries Plc complex in Enugu and other works. Work has not begun at the mausoleum in full capacity due to non-release of the full project plan, which could affect the execution time frame of 13 months. Also, during a visit to the site, it was observed that work is in progress at the mausoleum but not on other buildings within Zik’s compound. A reliable source from the company confirmed that the buildings within the compound were not included in the contract, but added that the FG might incorporate same as the project advances. The source revealed the original plan of the mausoleum has been changed from what it used to be to something different. It should be recalled that this project has suffered several abandonment and modifications, starting from military regime to where it is now. With this current contract, the project would have gulped approximately N2billion in 17 years, but hope is heightened, as many believe this would be the last hurdle to be scaled. The original plan for the mausoleum was conceived and designed during General Sani Abacha’s administration to serve as a national monument in recognition of the late statesman’s contribution to the liberation and emancipation of Nigeria and the black race from the clutches of colonialism. According to details of the second contract awarded during former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s tenure, the mausoleum complex would be 30 metres above the ground —equivalent of a 10-storey building, to accommodate an administrative block, guesthouse, and swimming pool. The first contract was awarded for N350 million in 1996 to an Owerri-based construction firm, Lemmy Akakem and Co., but was abandoned while Abacha was still in power. His successor, General Abdulsalami Abubakar did not touch the project, not even with a long pole. During Obasanjo’s campaign in1999, he visited the site, where he pledged to complete the project upon assuming office. Then, the former Minister of Works and Housing, Chief Tony Anenih, told Zik’s family that he had been instructed to get a first-class multinational company to handle the project but nothing happened. The contract was re-awarded to the same company in 2002, but the contractor, again failed to deliver. It was gathered that while the job was ongoing, some expatriate consultants and officials at the Ministry of Works condemned the standard of the work, which led to termination of the contract. The demand for the firm to refund an outstanding sum of N29, 578,749 to government led to litigations, which was finally settled in February 2006. By which time, the Obasanjo’s administration couldn’t do much until the tenure ended in 2007. Following the failure of the contract, it was gathered that the then Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Dr. Olusegun Mimiko, got an approval to re-award the contract to Beton Bau Nigeria Limited at the sum of N121 million. The site was handed over to the new contractor in November 2007 and was given nine months to complete the mausoleum, but five years after, nothing happened. Moving in the same manner of failed promises, President Jonathan, through the then Minister of Lands, Housing and Urban Development, Nduese Essien, during his visit to Onitsha assured Zik’s family that the mausoleum would be completed before the end of 2011. Essien said government was committed to making funds available for its completion in the 2011 Appropriation Act and again, nothing happened, which prompted Zik’s friends and associates from across the world to suggest relieving the government of the project, in order for them to raise funds and erect the mausoleum. BUT today, the story has changed. President Jonathan appears ready to make a name for himself by taking the most active step to complete the Mausoleum some decades and half after Zik joined his ancestors. The president re-awarded the project at the cost of N1.49 billion. It was the fourth time the FG would be awarding the contract since it was first awarded in 1996 to Messrs Lemmy Akakem for N350m. Meanwhile, other structures in the compound are crying for renovation and remodeling as they are in a state of serious dilapidation. The paint on the walls has been washed away. Also, some residents on the abandoned houses within the compound have turned some parts of the building into a poultry farm. People say the re-construction of the mausoleum alone without other buildings inside the compound would mar the final outlook of the project unless it is handled holistically. Add comment
Posted on: Mon, 24 Jun 2013 04:35:47 +0000
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