Fashola Reverses Self On ‘US-Nigeria Infrastructure’ Comment

The Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, on Friday retracted earlier claims that President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration has made more progress than the United States in terms of infrastructure since 2015.

The minister while clarifying on the claim said he was quoted out of context.

Fashola had while praising the achievement of his principal at an All Progressives Congress youth forum in Kano on Thursday, claimed Nigeria has achieved more in terms of infrastructure than the US.

He said, “From six years ago, this government led by President Muhammadu Buhari, as far as infrastructure is concerned, has been doing what the United States government is still trying to do; they (in the US) are still trying to pass their infrastructure bill and they are still fighting.”

The comment has become a trending conversation on different social media platforms including Twitter.

Fashola who was a former Lagos State while inspecting the ongoing Abuja-Kaduna-Kano road project said the US infrastructure far outclass what is obtainable in Nigeria considering their economic strength.

Fashola said, “The first point to make is I didn’t say that Nigeria’s infrastructure is better than America’s infrastructure because certainly anybody who knows what he is doing will know that America is a much richer nation, their infrastructure is well ahead of Nigeria.

“What I was talking about at the presentation with the APC youth was about the challenges of infrastructure, and that it is universal, every country commits to infrastructure as a legitimate way to create work, grow the economy and distribute wealth as we have seen here. That’s the first point I am making.

“And that in a democracy, you always need parliament to authorise what you spend on infrastructure. So, I was making the comparison that Buhari has been able to get his parliament to authorise his spending, and that is why we are able to gather here.

“But that the American government is struggling to get authorisation from their own parliament to start what we are already doing. I didn’t say that their infrastructure is better than theirs.

“The progress we are making here is making them uncomfortable, so they can’t disprove that work is going on and infrastructure is being developed. They are going to run a campaign of lies and disinformation, so we have to be careful with them.”