Inflation: Engineer advocates for asphalt in road construction as price of cement skyrocket
A Civil Engineer, Mr Aminu Musa has advocated for the adoption of asphalt as more suitable material for road construction as the price of cement continues to rise in the country.
Musa, the Chairman, Allwell Engineering Construction Company, made the call in an interview with journalists on Tuesday in Lagos.
He said that asphalt was a more considerable product for road construction as opposed to cement which has seen a significant increase in prices in recent times.
He noted that if cement was used for road construction, it could further increase the demand for product which would lead to more increase in price, thereby having a direct impact on the life of ordinary citizen.
According to him, the current trend shows a significant increase in cement prices. If road surfaces were to be converted to concrete cement, the domestic demand for cement in Nigeria would rise further, leading to a further increase in cement prices.
“Cement is a material closely related to the daily lives of the ordinary people, and their sensitivity to cement prices is higher.
“Asphalt concrete had constantly been used in road constructions prior to now and in comparison with cement, has less relevance to the day-to-day lives of citizens, hence an increase in demand for the product will have very little or no effect on the people.
“Asphalt, on the other hand, is less relevant to the daily lives of the ordinary people, and they are less sensitive to changes in asphalt prices.
“Moreover, asphalt concrete has been used for road construction in the past, achieving a certain balance on demand and supply,” he noted.
The engineer added that with the recent hike in prices of goods across the country, it would further pose more challenges on the federal government.
Musa, therefore, appealed to construction workers to look into the use of asphalt rather than cement for the construction of road surfaces in order to balance out its demand and supply.
“Currently, protests against rising costs have erupted across the country. If cement prices spiral out of control due to policy adjustments by the ministry of works, it will exacerbate social instability and pose greater challenges for the government.
“In such a scenario, the Ministry of Works will not be contributing to the Tinubu’s government but rather undermining it.
“Therefore, the policy advocated by the ministry to implement cement concrete road surfaces is extremely ill-advised during a period of severe inflation and strong public resistance to price hikes.
“The actions of the Minister of Works will only add fuel to the fire of the difficulties faced by the President and the current government,” he noted.
Allwell Engineering Construction Company
