The Minister of Works, David Umahi, has said the Third Mainland Bridge will gulp N3.6 trillion for rehabilitation.

According to him, the bridge has issues with its underwater structures; hence, the need for the rehabilitation.

He made this known at the recent Federal Executive Council meeting presided over by President Bola Ahmed at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

In the same vein, FEC also approved N493 billion for two major projects, N359 billion to rebuild Lagos’ Carter Bridge and N134 billion to upgrade the 152 km Kano–Katsina Road.

The minister stressed that the 11.8-kilometre-long Lagos bridge was declared irreparable after structural damage, while the road’s cost rose due to economic changes.

Barely a week ago, the Federal Government ordered the closure of the Third Mainland Bridge to heavy-duty vehicles.

Umahi said, “Among other emergency jobs that you’ve been seeing in Lagos, we are having a very deep conversation on the Third Mainland Bridge and Carter Bridge.”

Recall that in March this year, the Federal Government had announced that Third Mainland and Carter bridges in Lagos rehabilitation will cost N21 billion and N25 billion, respectively.

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Human rights activist, Femi Falana, SAN, has revealed the reason the Federal Government pardoned the Ibom Air passenger, Comfort Emmanson.

Falana, who made this revelation in a statement on Wednesday, said the government withdrew the case against the female passenger because of its refusal to charge Fuji Star, Wasiu Ayinde Marshal, a.k.a KWAM 1, with appropriate criminal offences.

He alleged that the government has lost the moral right to prosecute any unruly passenger who commits an offence at any of the nation’s airports.

The Senior Advocate also frowned at the way the government is handling the case against KWAM 1, over his recent conduct at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.

He lamented that the government hastily accepted KWAM 1’s apology and granted him pardon without allowing the police to conclude its investigation.

“Since citizens have equal rights, obligations, and opportunities before the law, the Federal Government will henceforth be accused of subjecting any unruly passenger to discriminatory treatment on the ground that KWAM 1 was ‘pardoned’ without any criminal trial whatsoever,” he said.

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US President Donald Trump on Wednesday, August 13, said he would seek a three-way meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin immediately after his upcoming Alaska summit with Putin — part of his push to end the three-year war in Ukraine.

Trump spoke after what he described as a “very good” call with European leaders, including Zelensky, even as Russian forces made their largest advance into Ukraine in over a year.

“If the first one goes okay, we’ll have a quick second one,” Trump told reporters, referring to Friday’s planned face-to-face with Putin in Anchorage. “I would like to do it almost immediately — a quick second meeting between President Putin, President Zelensky, and myself, if they’d like to have me there.”

The high-stakes summit comes as Trump struggles to deliver on his campaign pledge to end the conflict, with Zelensky and European allies urging him to push for a ceasefire. However, fears are growing that Trump and Putin could strike a deal forcing painful concessions from Ukraine, especially since Zelensky was not invited to the Anchorage talks.

Trump warned he would cancel the follow-up meeting if Putin appeared to be acting in bad faith. “If I feel that it’s not appropriate because I didn’t get the answers we have to have, then we are not going to have a second meeting,” he said.

According to an AFP analysis of battlefield data, Russian forces on Tuesday captured their largest area of Ukrainian territory in a single day in more than a year — roughly 110 square kilometers.

Earlier in the day, Zelensky joined German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and other European leaders, along with NATO and EU chiefs, in a joint call with Trump. The consensus, leaders said, was for Trump to secure a ceasefire, with Trump warning Russia of “severe consequences” if it refused.

Still, Zelensky voiced doubts about Moscow’s intentions: “I have told my colleagues — the US president and our European friends — that Putin definitely does not want peace.”

While Trump described Friday’s meeting as “really a feel-out meeting,” he hinted at potential land swaps in a future settlement. Merz noted Ukraine is ready to negotiate on territorial issues but stressed that recognizing Russian-occupied areas “would not be up for debate.”

Despite diplomatic efforts, Russia’s offensive in eastern Ukraine continues to accelerate. Ukrainian troops near the front line in Kramatorsk expressed little optimism.

“Putin is massing an army, he is stockpiling weapons, he is pulling the wool over our eyes,” said Artem, a 30-year-old serviceman. “This war will likely continue for a long time.”

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