The Managing Director of China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC), Mr. Guan Shuai, has revealed that investment into the Lekki Free Trade Zone (FTZ) over the past nine months has equalled the total recorded in the preceding four years combined.
He made the announcement during the commissioning of the Lekki Port Access Road, inaugurated by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu Thursday.
Speaking at the event, Mr. Shuai expressed deep appreciation to President Tinubu, recounting the origins of the Lekki Free Trade Zone and praising the renewed investor confidence under the President’s leadership.
“Your Excellency, the President Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Ministers and Distinguished everyone, it’s my honour to stand here on behalf of CCECC and other contractors to share some of my memories and feelings,” he began.
“About 20 years ago, as I can remember, the area around here, an old swampy area with bungalows. During the site inspection of Mr. President, who was the Governor of Lagos State at that time, he decided to establish a Free Trade Zone in Lekki. That was 2006.”
“I can clearly remember, sir, because I was the project manager on site in this area. That’s the beginning of my career, which I can never forget.”
Shuai explained that the groundwork laid by President Tinubu during his tenure as Governor of Lagos has now yielded results. He pointed to a surge in foreign interest in the Free Trade Zone following Tinubu’s recent visit to China.
“But today, what I want to report to you, sir, is during the past one year, especially when you came back from the 4K in China, more and more investors are coming to Nigeria and coming to our Free Zone,” he said.
“The figure of the Free Zone shows that the investment of the past nine months can compare with the figure of the last four years. The principle is easy to understand.”
He attributed the increased investment to the growing global confidence in Nigeria’s direction and leadership.
“The investors coming is not because we forced them to come. It’s because they saw the changes of the country and they have confidence in our country. And what’s more important, they have confidence in your leadership, sir,” Shuai said.
He further lauded President Tinubu’s infrastructural vision and track record.
“Looking at what you’ve done, sir — such as what I just mentioned 20 years ago, the first Free Zone in Nigeria and the first Free Zone even in West Africa, and what you are doing now — the Renewed Hope agenda, the railway construction, the road construction, the airport development and so on, we sincerely thank you for your vision, experience and leadership, sir,” Shuai said.
Speaking on behalf of contractors, Shuai noted the longstanding contribution of CCECC to Nigeria’s development and praised the government’s commitment to infrastructure delivery.
“When it comes to our commissioning projects, as a company established in Nigeria for about 44 years, I don’t need to mention too much about what we’ve done and what we are working on,” he added.
He also singled out the Honourable Minister of Works for his extraordinary commitment and attention to detail.
“The Honourable Minister is here. He knows every detail of the work on site. And actually, I feel a bit of shame in front of him. I’ll give you an example,” Shuai recounted.
“About two months ago, it was weekend, late evening time, he called me during his site inspection.”
“He asked, why did you remove your project manager from Enugu site to some other site? I feel surprised. How did you know that? But he did. He even knows how many equipment and how many engineers you have on each site.”
“All those details he knows. And if you work slow, you’ll get the pressure from him. But frankly, we all need to thank him,” he added. “I think all the achievements our ministry gets, we deserve it, sir.”
Closing his address, Shuai reaffirmed CCECC’s commitment to the Renewed Hope infrastructure agenda and expressed optimism about Nigeria’s future.
“Your Excellency, on behalf of all contractors, we feel very lucky to participate in the Renewed Hope work. And we all cherish the chance to provide a service to our country. And we will never disappoint you, sir,” he said.
Boluwatife Enome
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