Sokoto Gives Army 10 Hilux Vans to Guard Sokoto-Badagry Road

The Sokoto State Government has given 10 Hilux vehicles to the Nigerian Army's 8 Division to protect ongoing construction of the Sokoto-Badagry Superhighway, one of President Bola Tinubu's flagship road projects.

 

The Minister of State for Works, Mr Bello Goronyo, formally handed over the vehicles at a ceremony in Sokoto on Thursday. He acted on behalf of the Minister of Works, Sen. David Umahi.

 

Goronyo said the operational vehicles were donated by the Sokoto State Governor, Alhaji Ahmad Aliyu, to support troops and the wider security arrangements for the highway project.

 

He called the donation another milestone in delivering President Tinubu's goal of providing critical infrastructure for Nigeria, particularly the four legacy projects under the Renewed Hope Agenda.

 

 

Describing the scale of the project, the minister said:

 

"This very important arterial road corridor is a stretch of about 1,068 kilometres and is going to criss-cross Sokoto, Kebbi, Niger, Kwara, Oyo, Ogun and Lagos states.

 

"It is going to link to the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, a span of about 750 kilometres, and it will link to the Trans-Saharan route which will begin from Esso in Calabar all the way to Benue and other corridors to Akwanga, Jos, Bauchi, Gombe and beyond."

 

According to Goronyo, the superhighway is a deliberate effort to build infrastructure for prosperity. He said it is being constructed with continuously reinforced concrete, which he said would last 50 years or more, beyond the present generation.

 

He added that infrastructure development would add to the nation's Gross Domestic Product, in addition to making travel safer and easing the evacuation of farm produce.

 

The minister commended Aliyu for the timely intervention and for showing true partnership with the Federal Government in delivering Tinubu's Renewed Hope Agenda.

 

Receiving the vehicles, the General Officer Commanding (GOC) 8 Division, Maj.-Gen. Bemgha Koughna, thanked the governor for what he called an invaluable gesture. Koughna spoke on behalf of the Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Waidi Shaibu.

 

He assured that the vehicles would be put to good use in diligently protecting the superhighway project.

 

Koughna said the army currently maintains 17 independent deployments and routine patrols along the road corridor, adding that "the vehicles will be of immense benefit towards further securing the project."

 

He praised Aliyu for his sustained moral and financial support to the security forces, saying the gesture would spur troops to fully protect the national asset and safeguard the lives and property of all law-abiding Nigerians.

 

The project was inaugurated on Oct. 24, 2024, with a ground breaking ceremony in Illela Local Government Area of Sokoto State.