EXCLUSIVE: ₦16.5Billion Taraba Bridge Reconstruction Funds Allegedly Diverted To Access Road; Tinubu’s Minister Faces Scrutiny

The Federal Executive Council (FEC) initially approved N16.5 billion for the urgent rebuilding of the bridge, but sources indicate that the funds were allegedly diverted to a 43.5 km access road, without proper FEC approval.

Documents obtained by SaharaReporters reveal a brewing controversy over the handling of the collapsed Namnai Bridge reconstruction project in Taraba State.

The Federal Executive Council (FEC) initially approved N16.5 billion for the urgent rebuilding of the bridge, but sources indicate that the funds were allegedly diverted to a 43.5 km access road, without proper FEC approval.

Multiple sources told SaharaReporters on Sunday that following the collapse of the bridge in August 2024, the Minister of State for Regional Development, Uba Maigari Ahmadu, quickly visited the site with the Managing Director of the North East Development Commission (NEDC).

President Bola Tinubu appointed Maigari as Minister of State for Steel Development, a position he held until 2024, before redeploying him to his current role as Minister of State for Regional Development.

One of the sources said, "Fast forward to July 2025, when a boat capsized, resulting in the deaths of six-months-pregnant Aisha, whose body has still not been found, and a toddler, Baby Abis, whose body also remains missing. Then there is Bara’atu, whose body was recovered.

“Heavy-duty machinery, including excavators, was mobilized with promises that work would begin within a week, whether through a floating bridge, a temporary structure, or any feasible solution. However, no visible progress was made, raising serious concerns among local residents.”

Meanwhile, the Minister of Works, Dave Umahi, prepared an emergency reconstruction proposal and presented it to FEC, which approved the N16.5 billion allocation, the source said.

"Dave Umahi, the Minister of Works, immediately prepared an emergency proposal for the reconstruction of the bridge and presented it to the Federal Executive Council (FEC) for approval. The FEC approved N16.5 billion for the project, and on September 10, 2025, the contract was awarded. The Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) issued its no-objection, and everything was ready to proceed," the source said.

The contract for the bridge reconstruction was formally awarded, with the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) issuing a no-objection certificate, signaling readiness for immediate commencement of work.

However, before the contractors were mobilized to the site, a second award letter was issued on October 28, 2025, to the same contractor for the construction of the access road immediately after the collapsed bridge along the 43.5 km Jalingo–Wukari Road, also valued at N16.5 billion. This effectively diverted the bridge contractor to another project.

SaharaReporters obtained a document dated September 10, 2025, signed by Dauda Ismaila Belel, Director of Public Procurement, which disclosed the provisional award of the emergency reconstruction contract for the 10-span Nammai Bridge at Ch. 43+500 along the Jalingo–Wukari Road in Taraba State.

The letter stated: “I am directed to convey to you the Management’s approval for the emergency reconstruction of the bridge at Ch. 43+500 (Nammai Bridge) along the Jalingo–Wukari Road in Taraba State (10 spans) in the provisional sum of ₦16,500,000,000.00 (Sixteen Billion, Five Hundred Million Naira) only, inclusive of 7.5% VAT.”

Shockingly, before contractors could mobilize, a second award letter dated October 28, 2025 was issued to the same contractor, this time for the construction of a 43.5 km access road instead of the bridge, still at the original N16.5 billion allocation.

In another document obtained by SaharaReporters, dated October 28, 2025, and signed by Dauda Ismaila Belel, Director of Public Procurement, the Ministry issued the same ₦16.5 billion for the provisional award of a contract for the emergency reconstruction of the access road to the Nammai Bridge at Ch. 43+500 along the Jalingo–Wukari Road in Taraba State.

The letter read: “I am directed to convey to you the Management’s approval for the award of the contract for the Emergency Reconstruction of the Access Road to the Bridge at Ch. 43+500 (Namnai Bridge) along the Jalingo–Wukari Road in Taraba State, in the provisional sum of ₦16,500,000,000.00 (Sixteen Billion, Five Hundred Million Naira) only, inclusive of 7.5% VAT.”

Sources question the legality of the diversion.

“No approval in Nigeria is higher than FEC. Who authorised this sudden shift? If FEC approved it, when?” one of the sources said.

Another source said, "No approval in Nigeria is higher than FEC. Who approves the diversion of the contract from Emergency Bridge to Access Road? If FEC approves it, when?

"What we heard reliably is that the Minister of State for Regional Development Uba Maigari Ahmadu went to the Minister of Works and even wrote a letter that NEDC has awarded the bridge contract. Hence why the other award came up for access road but that is illegal because it has not gone back to FEC for approval to change it to access road from bridge.

"As of yesterday, all the heavy duty machines earlier brought by the NEDC to the Bridge site had vanished and nothing was left there except for one bulldozer and some small number of boulders (gravels).

"The Minister should tell us why the award was changed since he said he had been meeting with the Minister of Works. Or is he not aware of the change in the contract?"

In a statement released on Sunday, Jamila M. Indabawa, Senior Special Assistant on Media, to Maigari Ahmadu, said a young man, operating the social media handle Abdulmumin Imam, had repeatedly circulated fabricated allegations claiming that the Minister diverted funds for the reconstruction of the damaged Namnai Bridge along the Jalingo–Wukari Road.

The accuser also alleged that the supposed diversion was the reason the project had not begun.

She noted that Ahmadu had held several meetings with the Minister of Works, Umahi, to ensure the project received priority attention.

Rather than engage in what she called a cheap social media brawl, the Minister has opted for a legal route. Indabawa said Ahmadu instructed his lawyers to take the matter to court to protect his name, legacy, and reputation.

SaharaReporters previously reported that the controversy surrounding Maigari Ahmadu, deepened last Friday after fresh revelations indicated that the Minister allegedly secured a court order for the arrest of Taraba-based civic advocate, Abdulmumuni Imam, barely days after publicly denying any involvement in such moves.

Imam, a vocal critic of the Nigerian government’s handling of the collapsed Namnai Bridge and the alleged diversion of ₦16.5billion earmarked for its reconstruction, has been at the centre of a heated faceoff with the Minister.

A source familiar with the development told SaharaReporters that the Minister’s team initially approached the Upper Area Court to obtain a warrant for Imam’s arrest.

“What happened was, they first went to the Upper Area Court and got an order for his arrest. When we got that information and released it to the media, they rushed back to the Federal High Court on Friday and withdrew the order,” the source said.

The source added that after the withdrawal, the Minister’s legal team returned to the Federal High Court in Jalingo, where they reportedly secured another arrest order, followed by claims circulated in local media that Imam had gone into hiding.

“I can tell you for free that Imam has not been served. Nobody invited him and he didn’t refuse any invitation,” the source insisted.

Earlier reports by SaharaReporters had highlighted the Minister’s public denial of ever procuring a secret court order against the activist.

However, the latest actions contradict that position where the Minister denied securing any court order to arrest Imam.

The denial was contained in a statement issued by Jamila M. Indabawa, Senior Special Assistant on Media to the Minister, following claims that security agencies had been mobilised to track and arrest Imam over his online commentaries and public engagements on the stalled project.

The Minister had insisted that he welcomed public scrutiny and would never endorse the use of security agencies against critics, adding that the allegations were false, malicious, and designed to incite public distrust.

Meanwhile, the Minister’s counsel, Ibrahim Effiong, confirmed to journalists in Jalingo that the Federal High Court had indeed issued an arrest warrant against Imam, whom he described as a self-acclaimed social media activist.

Effiong accused Imam of defaming the Minister and misleading the public with allegations that ₦16.5 billion approved for the reconstruction of Namnai Bridge had been diverted.