By Daniel Tyokua
The Minister of Works, Senator David Umahi, has said the Federal Government must intensify efforts to communicate its infrastructure achievements to Nigerians, particularly young people.
Umahi said the ministry was planning to mobilise 4,000 social media influencers to showcase ongoing and completed federal infrastructure projects across the country.
The minister spoke on Tuesday in Abuja while receiving the leadership of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), which presented its report on a nationwide inspection of federal road projects.
He also called on NANS to advise the ministry on how best to use young people and social media platforms to communicate the impact of federal infrastructure projects.
According to him, effective communication was necessary to enable Nigerians to understand the projects being executed by the government across the country.
“If you don’t say ‘I am’, nobody will tell you who you are,” he said.
He urged students and other youth groups to visit federal projects, assess their progress and share their observations with the public.
The minister said such independent inspections would also enable students to identify areas where government could improve its infrastructure interventions.
Umahi described President Bola Tinubu as an infrastructure President, arguing that construction activities were taking place across different parts of the country.
“Tell me any way in this country, any region that is not a construction site. And so, we have enough to campaign for the President. We have enough,” he said.
The minister also disclosed plans to improve infrastructure around tertiary institutions, including pedestrian bridges and access roads.
He said requests for pedestrian bridges at the University of Abuja and Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, were being considered, adding that the ministry would explore the construction of spur roads to universities where necessary.
On the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, Umahi said the main pavement covering 105 kilometres of the section under construction was expected to be completed by November.
“I am proud of what the President is doing in infrastructure. I am proud of the quality he has made in various sectors of the economy. So, we have to tell our stories.
“We have to fight this social media war. So, we have to launch 4,000 social media influencers to tell our stories,” Umahi said.
