When it materialises, a bridge across River Buruku in Benue State will no doubt save lives and open up economic activities on coastal areas and environs. It will link Logo and Buruku local government areas for easy movement. The bridge will also lessen the difficulty motorists experience plying through Benue from the South to Taraba and other North East states of the country.
Curiously, since 2008, the idea of constructing the bridge has been on the floor of the National Assembly. It was even captured in the national budget of 2009 and N300million was allocated for designing, while the cost of the bridge was put at N4billion.
But since then, neither the design nor contract for the construction of that bridge, expected to be awarded the following year, has seen the light of day.
In 2012, while the idea was still in the cooler, the cost of construction had jumped to N12billion when the matter came up on the floor of the House of Representatives again through the member representing Buruku federal constituency, Emmanuel Orker Jev, a lawyer.
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In 2013, 2018, and 2021, there were major boat mishaps at the Buruku crossing point, during which many lives were lost. That development also necessitated a visit by a delegation of the National Assembly to ascertain the level of damage and other things.
Read more: https://dailytrust.com/15-years-after-conception-buruku-bridge-project-still-a-mirage/
