The Federal Government has defended its decision to award the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project to Hitech Construction Company Ltd., saying the firm was selected based on its expertise and past performance.
Minister of Works, Senator Dave Umahi, addressed concerns over the contract’s bidding process during an inspection tour of the project in Lagos on Saturday.
He explained that while some critics claimed the project did not go through a competitive bidding process, the government followed legal procurement methods.
“There are three types of procurement allowed by law: restrictive procurement, selective/competitive bidding, and open bidding,” Umahi said.
According to him, the government specifically sought companies with at least five concrete pavers, a crucial technology for the project, and found that such expertise was not widespread in Nigeria.
“You will agree with me that until we started this, the concrete paver was not common in Nigeria as it is today. We had to look for a company that had done this kind of project before, and that is Hitech,” he added.
He cited Hitech’s successful reconstruction of the Oworonshoki-Apapa Road in Lagos as proof of its capability, noting that the company’s performance on that project influenced the decision to entrust it with Section 1 of the Lagos-Calabar Highway.
