FASHOLA: CONSTRAINED BY PAUCITY OF FUNDS

executed in areas bedevilled by insurgency and terrorism. There is also the challenge of acquiring land for building projects. Sometimes, negotiations with communities and private land owners drag on for several months, thereby delaying execution of critical projects.

In terms of policy formulation, many will agree that the Power, Works and Housing Ministry under Fashola has been up and doing. A good few will also agree that the ministry has taken bold steps in terms of project execution, but largely constrained by funds. On the impact the ministry has had on Nigerians, quite a few will agree that even though it has done well within a short period of time despite inadequate resources, it is still work in progress because power supply is still largely unstable, coupled with other unresolved challenges of estimated billing, inadequate prepaid meters and ageing infrastructure. In Works, while the ministry has embarked on several road projects across the country, including rehabilitation works, some of the strategically important road projects like the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Oyo-Ogbomoso Expressway, and the 2nd Niger Bridge have not been delivered almost four years since the present team came on board even though they remain priority projects. In the housing sector where Nigeria is believed to have a deficit of about 17 million units, several building projects are on going in 34 states, but they are yet to be fully completed and delivered to the end users (Nigerians).