By John Adams (Minna), Obinna Odogwu (Awka), Geoffrey Anyanwu (Enugu), Joe Effiong (Uyo), Tony John (Port Harcourt), Tony Osauzo (Benin), Gyang Bere (Jos), Okey Sampson (Umuahia), Chijioke Agwu (Abakaliki), Rose Ejembi (Makurdi), and Paul Osuyi (Asaba)

At inception, the President Muhammadu Buhari administration railed against the perceived gross infrastructural deficits of the country, which it said it had inherited from the ex-President Goodluck Jonathan administration in 2015.

In the first term, it put the infrastructural development poster-boy of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and former Lagos State governor, Babatunde Fashola as the Minister of Works, Housing and Power, under which the bulk of infrastructural projects were to be executed.

The Federal Government also took huge foreign loans to fund its massive infrastructure development agenda. Even in this second term, the government has continued to accumulate more foreign loans to finance infrastructure projects. Yet across the country, there is lamentation and outcry by the people over the state of federal infrastructure projects. Below is a blow by blow report on the situation in states:

 

ANAMBRA

In Anambra State, two of the known projects of the Federal Government are the Second Niger Bridge in Onitsha and the Enugu-Onitsha Expressway. Work on the two projects is progressing. The road project is a dual carriageway highway that runs through many communities starting from Amansea in Awka North Local Government Area of the state, terminating at the Onitsha bridgehead.

Originally, the contract for the Enugu-Onitsha expressway that connects Enugu and Anambra states was awarded to RCC Nigeria Limited in January 2015, to rehabilitate only the Amansea-Enugu section of the highway. But later in December 2017, the scope was expanded to include the rehabilitation of Umunya-Amawbia section of the Onitsha-Enugu expressway on the Anambra side.

The initial rehabilitation work is to cover 18km on the Enugu bound end and 40km on Onitsha bound side starting from Amansea by Ezu River. The length of the Umunya-Amawbia section is 18 km.

The scope of work involves full rehabilitation which would entail site clearance, scarification of existing surface dressing on shoulders and carriageway, milling of existing asphaltic concrete, earthworks, provision of 200mm soil cement stabilized layer as subbase.

There is also the provision of 200mm crushed rock as base, provision of 60mm asphaltic binder course, provision of 60mm modified binder course, provision of 40mm asphaltic wearing course, construction of line drains, box culverts, pipe culverts, catch pits and other concrete works.

The contract sum at the time of commencement was N62 billion. The project was supposed to be for 36 months ending on February 16, 2018. But the project was expanded with the result that the Anambra component was started on May 23, 2018, and supposed to be done over a 42-month period ending on November 23, 2021.

The completion deadline has since expired while the Amawbia-Umunya road is still in a terrible state of dilapidation though the other side of the dual carriageway is good to some extent. 

So far, only 30.78 per cent of the work has been done. Notwithstanding this clearly poor level of performance, the All Progressives Congress government at the centre has never ceased to crow about the infrastructure projects being executed by the Buhari administration in the Southeast geopolitical zone. 

But the natives of Anambra State and other users of the road, who wear the shoe and have first-hand knowledge of daily trauma they experience on the particular section of the road, have bitter tales to tell. 

To some extent, they showed their frustration with the lies being told to them by the party during the November 6 governorship election in which the APC candidate,  Senator Andy Uba got a perfect trouncing by the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) candidate, Prof Chukwuma Soludo, who was promoted by the state government.

It is notable that the Anambra State government rebuilt the Awka-Onitsha section of the expressway from Eze Uzu Junction to Amawbia Junction, tarring both sides of the dual carriageway.

The state government also built three flyovers on that long stretch at Aroma Junction, Akwata Junction and Amawbia Junction.

The state’s Commissioner for Works, Mr Marcel Ifejiofor, told Sunday Sun that the Federal Government has not fully reimbursed the money the state government spent on the project.

“It was among the federal roads done by the state government. Part reimbursement was paid. If the Federal Government had reimbursed us in full, we would have done it to Amansea,” Ifejiofor said.

However, a chieftain of the APC and Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr Chris Ngige, announced that the Second Niger Bridge has reached 80 per cent completion.

 

ENUGU

Recently, the 40.37-kilometre Nnewe-Oduma road linking Enugu and Ebonyi states, constructed by the Federal Government was commissioned. Also, the runway of the Akanu Ibiam International Airport in Enugu was reconstructed. Apart from these two, all other federal projects in the state have either been abandoned or suffering snail-speed rehabilitation.

Expectedly, the people desire good infrastructural projects, and showed excitement when the Nenwe road was commissioned just as they were happy when the Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu was reopened.

However, the non-completion of work at the international terminal of the airport has left the people downcast because of the snail-speed work being done or even not done at all.

Meanwhile work is in progress on one lane of the Enugu-Port Harcourt expressway, which again has been touted as another evidence of federal presence in the Southeast. 

But the harsh treatment of the people by soldiers deployed to the geopolitical zone is for most ordinary indigenes a sharper and more painful evidence of federal presence in the Southeast than the projects. 

Whereas substantial progress has been made from Lokpanta to Ituku-Ozalla, the people are simply unable to understand the snail pace of the contractor assigned to execute the project, which has been on the same spot between Amaechi and close to New Artisan market, thereby causing untold hardship to motorists and commuters.

The Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Raji Fashola, had in February assured the people that the rehabilitation of the Lokpanta to Enugu and the Abia to Rivers State boundaries on the Enugu-Port Harcourt expressway would be completed in July. 

He said this while commissioning a 2.1km road constructed by the ministry at the National Institute for Nigerian Languages, NINLAN, Aba, Abia and explained that the Lokpanta axis to the Enugu border was 98 per cent completed and would be delivered before the end of April while work on the trailer park was also ongoing.

However, the people are curious about what may happen to the other lane of the expressway going by the way the contractors were jumping over some portions of the road. 

They are also confused about what the minister meant by the road being 98 per cent completed when one lane has not been touched at all. 

A commercial driver, Jude Ikem, who plies the route daily said: “I must tell you the truth, the joy we had more than a year ago when they started this side of the road, has actually died. We are confused at what they are doing and we pray this job will not be abandoned. Government should ensure that the contractor is paid so that they speed up the work because they are working like people who are being owed. We suffer so much here, sometimes you will be on this traffic for three or four hours.”

The Enugu end of the Enugu-Onitsha expressway is another typical example of an abandoned federal project. Starting from the 82 Division, Nigerian Army Headquarters, to the Ninth Mile Corner, linking the Southern and Northern parts of the country, the Enugu-Onitsha Expressway, has become a big embarrassment to many of its users. 

The road has worn out dangerously to the extent that even articulated vehicles mostly tankers can no longer ply it. It has been abandoned to the ubiquitous herders and their cows. The road is no longer a thoroughfare. Indeed, it has become a cowfare.

Lamenting the heartbreak that has become the road, a writer and public affairs analyst, Dons Eze said: “The Enugu-Onitsha expressway which was started by the Obasanjo military administration in the mid-1970s, and was significantly improved upon by the Shehu Shagari civilian government between 1979 and 1983, was never fully completed and officially commissioned before the military struck again in December 1983. But because of the importance of the road to the economy of the Southeast, and indeed all Nigerians, people started using it, unfinished.

 “The Enugu-Onitsha road is not just one small road tucked away somewhere in the Southeast. It is a major federal highway connecting the Southwest through the River Niger to the Southeast, South-south and Northern Nigeria, through Benue and Kogi states. The road is an important artery of commerce, culture and race. Even as important as the road to the economic viability, cultural integration and national planning of Nigeria, the highway has since virtually ceased to exist. It is encumbered by deep gullies, potholes, thorn-bushes, thistles and craters which have now rendered the expressway impassable. Over the years, we usually see some road construction equipment, such as bulldozers, caterpillars, etc, mounted on the expressway to give the impression that reconstruction work was going on, whereas there would be nothing to that effect.”

The contract for the reconstruction or rehabilitation of the road under the present Buhari administration was given in the first term of the administration and RCC took off from 9th Mile axis of one lane and stopped at Nkwo Ezeagu and did a good job of it and since then nothing has been done on the road.

The Nsukka-Obollo-Afor-Ikem-Ehamufu-Nkalagu road could be said to be ongoing, but the residents around the area are not comfortable with the pace of work. 

Mr Ojobor told Sunday Sun: “It is difficult to understand what they are doing. Nsukka axis has witnessed the first coating of the road and it was abandoned that way, the rains have destroyed that one. Between Obollo and Ikem has partly been completed, but some portions in the stretch of the road have not been done yet.  We appeal to government to use this dry season to come and do the road.”

 

Enugu Digital Bridge Institute lying fallow

The Digital Bridge Institute, Enugu, completed many years ago is another Federal Government project abandoned in Enugu and its abandonment has raised questions on why a government should invest huge resources to put up a facility and allow it to waste.

The Institute, a branch of the National Communications Commission (NCC), was attracted by the former Chairman, Senate Committee on Information, Sen. Ayogu Eze, and was built to offer training in information and communication technologies and in the process bridge the knowledge-gap in the ever-changing world of digital technologies for youths in the Southeast states and Nigerians at large. But since completion, no serious effort has been made by the Federal Government to put the facility to use.

Located at Ibagwa-Nike in Enugu East Local Government, the institute is lying fallow, and there is palpable fear that it would be consumed by bush fire one day as the facility and its surroundings have been overgrown by gigantic grasses.

In June 2017, the Federal Government approved the Digital Bridge Institute as one of the campuses for the proposed ICT University of Nigeria. Government said the ICT University would use the Digital Bridge Institute (DBI)in Enugu, Abuja, Lagos, Kano, Asaba and Yola as campuses. Even three members of the Implementation Committee for the proposed ICT University, Dr. Henry Nkemadu, Matthew A. Olaniyan and the Director General of Voice of Nigeria (VON), Mr Osita Okechuwu, who conducted a physical assessment of the Digital Bridge Institute Enugu, expressed satisfaction on the state of facilities at Enugu, and said that the campus was set for academics.

Concerned residents and citizens of the state, including the Speaker, Enugu State House of Assembly, Hon. Edward Ubosi, have expressed dissatisfaction with the state of the institute.

The Speaker while expressing worry over the abandonment of such a completed multi-million naira project said it would amount to economic waste if urgent steps were not taken to put it to use. 

Noting that the institute had been completed many years ago with state-of-the-art facilities, Ubosi wondered why such an important institute would not be put to use after completion thereby defeating the dreams of the youths in accessing the desired ICT training.

Ubosi also listed other abandoned federal projects in Enugu State to include, 100 units of housing estate all in Enugu East Local Government Area and Dam across the state. 

He appealed to the Federal Ministry of Housing to allocate the housing estate in Ugwuogo axis of Enugu East Local Government and all completed housing projects to address the housing deficits in Enugu State, and avoid the buildings becoming hideouts for criminals and kidnappers.

He equally called on the Ministry of Water Resources to complete all dam projects in Enugu State that have lingered for decades, especially Adada Dam to boost food production and encourage youths in agriculture.

 

NIGER

Until the recent award of contracts for the repair, reconstruction and rehabilitation of about nine federal roads linking Niger State with other parts of the country, only three visible federal projects have existed in the state since 2011. All the three visible projects were awarded by previous administrations between 2009 and 2011 and have remained uncompleted till today.

These projects are the N6 billion much trumpeted Baro Inland Port project which contract was awarded in 2011 by the Goodluck Jonathan administration, the 700 megawatts Zungeru hydroelectricity dam. The ground breaking ceremony was also performed by former President Jonathan in 2009, and the dualization of the 82-kilometer Minna-Suleja road project.

Since 2011 when Jonathan commissioned the 112 kilometers Bida-Mokwa road project, no single Federal Government project has been commissioned in the state. Apart from the Zungeru hydro dam project that has attained 90 per cent completion, and expected to be commissioned this month, according to Federal Ministry of Power, work on the Minna-Suleja highway and the Baro inland port project are still below 50 per cent.

During his campaign tour of the state in 2019, President Buhari purportedly commissioned the Baro inland port even when work on the project had not attained 50 per cent. Since the purported commissioning, no activity has taken place there as it has remained dormant and abandoned till date.

This development has continued to draw serious reactions from the people of the state, especially the 152 communities that were expected to benefit directly from the inland port if it had become operational.

For instance, former Commissioner for Information, Culture and Tourism in the state and an APC chieftain, Jonathan Vatsa recently accused the Minister of Transport, Rotimi Amaechi, of frustrating the formal take off of the Baro Inland Port in Niger State.

Vatsa, who is now the coordinator on Public Affairs to Governor Abubakar Sani Bello, believes that the stalled take-off of the port was the handwork of the Minister of Transport whom he said had frustrated every effort towards the realization of the important project.

He said that the recent declaration of Amaechi in an interview that the operationalization of Baro Inland Port and others was not realisable was a clear indication that “the minister did not believe in the project and, therefore, would not allow it to see the light of the day.”

He pointed out that the minister’s position came as a shock to all well-meaning people of the state who had been excited with the idea of having an inland port as it used to be in the past, adding that “Baro Port has a very historic record as one of the melting pots of economic activities in the North.”

Also, the dualization of the 82 kilometers Minna-Suleja road project, one of the most critical roads in the state, is another Federal Government project that has continued to suffer funding with only 40 per cent of the work achieved since 2009, when the first phase of the project, covering about 50 kilometers was awarded by the former President Jonathan administration.

The Minna-Suleja highway is the only road linking the state with Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) with an estimated 200 vehicles plying the road on daily basis. Statistics released by the Niger State Command of the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) showed that between January and September, 2016 about 147 people lost their lives on the road while 915 persons were injured in 361 road accidents in the state. In 2017 not less than 516 road crashes were recorded that resulted in 197 deaths while in 2018, 476 crashes resulting in 289 deaths were recorded.

The deplorable state of the road drew the anger of youths in the state under the auspices of National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN), Niger State chapter, which recently shut down the entire state for several hours to protest the terrible state of federal roads in the state.

 

AKWA IBOM

Akwa Ibom State appears to be one of the very few states with no noticeable federal project either completed or seriously ongoing in the past six years or thereabout.

The Federal University of Technology recently approved to be sited at Ikot Abasi is yet to take off, leaving the perennially dilapidated Calabar /Itu Road as the only federal project which some semblance of development going on.

The single carriage road, constructed in the mid-70’s from Odukpani in the present Cross River State through Itu to Ikot Ekpene in Akwa Ibom, has been in a terrible state in the last 10 years. It has in recent years attracted more controversies between Federal Government appointees and officials of the state government.

While the Senior Special Assistant to the President on National Assembly Affairs, Senator Ita Enang, had claimed some years ago that contract for the reconstruction of the road into a dual carriage way had been awarded by the Federal Government, it turned out that only a small portion of the road passing through Ibiono was reconstructed.

However, when our correspondent visited the road, it was observed that the construction giant, Julius Berger, was doing some remedial work by sand-filling and pouring granite on the gullies which had littered the road.

But people in the communities are not amused. The village head of Nkim Itam, one of the communities which the road traverses, Chief Bassey Ekanem, said the dilapidated road had led to loss of more than 20 lives to vehicular accidents.

“Many of the trucks usually fell at that junction, which is terribly bad. Even some bad boys from this community usually capitalize on it to block vehicles and rob their occupants. Pouring stone base without tarring the road is just a waste of resources because very soon, it would go bad again,” Ekanem said.

But Francis Anthony, a businessman in Ikot Akpan Itam, said the people of the area feel neglected by the Federal Government despite the fact that Akwa Ibom State is the highest producer of crude oil which the Federal Government uses to finance its projects.

 

RIVERS

The Bori-Bodo-Bonny road, the seemingly jinxed East-West Road, as well as the Port Harcourt and Onne sea ports are federal projects that can be easily identified in the state.

The East-West road, in particular, has generated so much concern and protests by aggrieved youths of Niger Delta region that it seems like the government has become used to the agitations.

Recently, youths from the Ogoni ethnic nationality staged a weeklong demonstration, because of the East-West road, especially the Akpajo-Eleme axis of the road. During the protest, the youths shut down the road and paralysed all business activities in the area. The Akpajo-Eleme axis of East-West road leads to the Port Harcourt Refinery, Eleme, Indorama Petrochemicals, Eleme, Oil and Gas Free Zone, Onne Sea Port, and Customs, Nigeria Ports Authority (NPA) and Nigerian Navy Basic Training School, Onne.

The East-West road traverses four local government areas (Eleme, Gokana, Khana and Tai) that make up Ogoni ethnic nationality.

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People who regularly ply the road daily experience the trauma of the half-hearted executed federal project.

 Investigations by Sunday Sun revealed that work on the Emohua axis of the East-West road being handled by Setraco is progressing. But, the situation is different for the Akpajo-Eleme part of the road.

Notable natives of the state, Mr Livingstone Wechie and Mr Christian Lekia, are expectedly not happy with the way the government has handled the East West Road project.

 

EDO

Non-payment of compensation, lack of funding and delay in approving pending bills of quantities, have been identified as factors delaying the completion of the dualization of the Benin-Auchi-Lokoja road project awarded by the administration of President Goodluck Jonathan in 2015.

Sources at the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing while responding to Sunday Sun enquiries attributed the slow pace of the project to these factors.

Part of the agreement reached between the Federal Government and the benefiting states from the project was that the states were to bear the cost of compensation‎ of communities, but the states are yet to meet this agreement.

Besides, it was learnt that because of the long time the project had taken, funds meant for it have been converted to maintenance, a situation which necessitated the contractors executing the project to put up new bills of quantities which the Federal Government is yet to approve.

“The contractors have submitted new bills of quantities for augumentation‎ which the Federal Government is yet to approve,” a source at the Ministry told Sunday Sun.

When contacted, the Controller of Works for Edo State, Engr. Ademola Aransiola, said: “All the contractors‎ are still working, but constraint of funding is a factor that has caused the delay of the road project.”

   

PLATEAU

For several years, the Jos-Abuja express road has been a nightmare for motorists and residents of Plateau State who ply the road daily. The situation is due to deep potholes that dot almost the entire stretch of the road.

In some instances, the deeply failed portions of the road turned into gullies that have led to trucks falling, causing loss of lives, goods and blockage of the road to traffic for hours and days.

In the resulting situation, armed robbers pounce on hapless commuters at such failed portions. The Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA) has made minimal and ineffective efforts to rehabilitate the road.

This year, FERMA carried out some repairs on major Federal Government roads through direct labour with a view to reducing the pains and agony of the people. The rehabilitation work was due to public outcry that bandits and armed robbers were taking advantage of the bad road to rob and kidnap innocent citizens.

The rehabilitation and reconstruction work brought some relief to people along Kuru down to a bridge at Farin-Lamba, but residents are worried over the durability of the work, which is usually washed during rainy season.

Pam Stephen, a motorist, suggested that the Federal Government should dualise it just like it is doing on the Abuja-Keffi-Akwanga and Makurdi roads, adding that filling potholes every year is a waste of resources.

 

ABIA

In Abia State, some of the Federal Government projects that readily come to the mind include the reconstruction of the Port Harcourt-Maiduguri narrow gauge rail line which runs through the state.

Others are the Ariaria Market Independent Power Project (IPP), the ongoing rehabilitation of the Enugu-Port Harcourt Expressway, the reconstruction of the Umuahia-Bende-Ohafia and Umuahia-Ikot Ekpene and the Aba-Ikot Ekpene highways.

Equally being handled by the Federal Government in Abia is the NSIA Healthcare Investments medical diagnostics centre in Umuahia.

Also, the other federal project is the installation of the 300 MVA 330/132/33kV transformer at the Alaoji transmission substation, near Aba.

Among these, the completed and commissioned projects include the medical diagnostic centre. Also, the first phase of the Ariaria Market (Aba) IPP, which is to supply electricity to 4,000 shops has been completed and commissioned. Residents of Umuahia and traders in Ariaria Market who spoke to Sunday Sun on the completed projects tanked the Federal Government for making life easier for the people.

The installation of a brand new 300MVA 330/132/33kV power transformer in the Alaoji transmission substation has been completed. This has boosted the substation’s installed capacity from 450MVA to 750MVA which makes it the biggest substation in southern Nigeria. The new transformer it has also boosted supply to the Enugu Electricity Distribution Company, EEDC, benefiting communities in Abia North.

The Umuahia-Bende-Ohafia and Umuahia-Ikot Ekpene highways appeared completely abandoned.

A chieftain of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) who is from Umuahia, Prince Benjamin Apugo, in a recent interview expressed displeasure over the abandonment of the two roads.

He recalled how the Minister of Works, Babatunde Fashola had performed the ground breaking ceremony, but till date, nothing has been done.

When Sunday Sun reporter visited some of the roads, contractors or their representatives were not on site, as they had moved out their machines.

 

EBONYI

There are few Federal Government projects sited in Ebonyi State, some have been completed while others are ongoing. Some of the completed projects include the 2000-capacity auditorium at the Alex Ekwueme Federal University Teaching Hospital-Abakaliki (AE-FUTHA). The beautiful edifice sited at the AE-FUTHA 2 was commissioned by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo in 2019.

A nurse at the hospital, Mrs. Nnenna Anyasi, told our correspondent that the auditorium is the place where all public events concerning the hospital are held.

“Since 2019 when it was commissioned, it has been very useful to the hospital community. Almost all the public events concerning the hospital hold here. It was the current CMD, Dr. Emeka Onwe, who ensured that the project was completed and put to use,” she said.

Another important federal project in the state is the newly established Federal College of Education Technical, Isu, in Onicha local government area of the state.

The college was among the six new federal colleges approved for establishment in 2020 by President Buhari for the six geopolitical zones in the country.

Early in 2021, the Provost, Prof Reuben Okechkwu, announced that the college would take off and commence academic activities by October this year.

However, a visit to the temporary site of the college at Isu Secondary School, Nkwagu Isu, evidently showed that the school is yet to take-off. There was no structure in place to host the college except for a few old buildings newly renovated which investigation showed that one of them has been designated to serve as the temporary administration block of the college.

A community leader in Isu community who requested not to be mentioned lamented the delay in the commencement of academic activities in the school.

He said: “We are worried that the school has not commenced. When they came looking for land, they assured us that in six months academic activities would kick off. Our people rallied round, donated this place and even assisted them in the provision of some amenities. But look at it now. It has been abandoned.”

When contacted, one of the principal officers of the school confirmed to our correspondent that the school was yet to take-off.

The officer who pleaded for anonymity said the failure of the college to take off as earlier announced by the Provost was due to lack of funds.

He said: “We didn’t take off again in October as we had announced. It was not the fault of the principal officers. The reason was that the Federal Government failed to release the take-off grant which we expected. Now, they have told us that the fund will now be released to us by January 2022.

“There is no structure yet on ground except some renovated buildings done by the community and some non-governmental organizations to support the school. TETFUND was supposed to release money for office buildings, but the money has not come. They said fund was not captured in the 2021 budget. But they said it has been captured in the coming 2022 budget. So we are still waiting.’’

Another important federal project in the state is the maternity complex being constructed by the Federal Ministry of Health. The project is a two-storey building sited at the premises of the National Obstetrics Fistula Centre in Abakaliki. It will be completed April 2022.

 

BENUE

 John Terwase, a resident of North Bank area of Makurdi, the Benue State capital, is overjoyed that the Makurdi-Lafia highway is finally being given attention by the Federal Government.

Terwase joy streams from the fact the massive work ongoing dualization/reconstruction of the Keffi-Akwanga-Lafia-Makurdi road has reached the popular Makurdi New Bridge. The dualization of the 222 kilometers road project was launched in November 2018 by the Federal Government. As at the time of this report, the project has reached 50 per cent completion between Lafia and Makurdi.

Also ongoing in the state is the rehabilitation of the Makurdi-Gboko-Katsina-Ala road and the construction/rehabilitation of Makurdi-Naka-Ankpa road where clearing, excavating, laterite filling or bitumen laying works are ongoing.

Our correspondent observed that work on all the roads have been intensified lately even as the quality of work has also been commended.

“They are doing a good job. The quality of tar on the road is very good and I also commend the pace of work especially at North Bank,” Terwase said.

However, Paul Denen, a resident of Naka town in Gwer West local government area of the state, looks forward to when the stretch of road from Naka to Makurdi will be completed.

“We were happy when we heard that the work has started from Adoka and coming towards Naka. Also, from what we have seen around Adoka, the quality of work is good, but we are eager to see the road completed up to Makurdi soon because travelling on the Makurdi-Naka Road has been a nightmare for everyone.”

Efforts to get the comments of the contractor failed, but the Federal Controller of Works in Benue State, Engr. Charles Oke, assured that work on the fourth section of the dualization from Lafia to New Makurdi bridge which is progressing steadily would be completed before the end of April 2022.

He said some of the portions are yet to be attended to on the Lafia-Makurdi road because of issues of compensation, but assured that all those would be resolved soon.

Oke who spoke to our correspondent by telephone also disclosed that work had gone far from Adoka to Naka adding that work would commence fully on the Naka- Makurdi portion of the highway.

 

 DELTA

 Despite the enormous benefits being envisaged from the completion of the Second Niger Bridge, residents of the immediate host community in Delta State, Oko-Amakom have lamented the twin impact of lack of access roads and environmental degradation as a result of the ongoing construction.

The Second Niger Bridge which connects Anambra and Delta states became imperative because of growing inadequacy of the old one built in 1965.

Work at the N414 billion Federal Government bridge project has advanced with the possibility of having it commissioned next year.

But residents of Oko-Amakom said the bridge has denied them access to the old bridge en route to Onitsha where most of them engage in economic activities for daily living.

They also complained that the ongoing construction work has brought woes with particular emphasis on environmental degradation.

Their lamentation is coming in spite of appeal by the Minister of Works, Fashola, that they should be patient, and that the various issues would be addressed adequately.

However, when Sunday Sun visited Oko-Amakom recently, a group of elders alleged that they had been forgotten, expressing fears that if their demands were not addressed, the bridge project would be meaningless.

Charles Enebeli Eguonu while saying that the project was well conceived noted that issues in all impacted areas must be adequately addressed to avoid robbing Peter to pay Paul.

“We are suffering as a result of the construction work going on. To start with, there is no road in Oko. The people here are suffering. They have to do the adjoining roads because if the bridge is completed and there are no connecting roads, it will become a bridge to nowhere,” Eguonu said.

His fears were reinforced by the Ogah of Oko-Amakom, Onochie Ezenyili, who lamented the lack of access to and from the community.

“All these Oko roads have not be done. From here to the head bridge (old bridge), there is no access again. You will have to climb up, then come down and in a little while, they will close it because of what they are doing here.

“We can no longer access Onitsha. That is what we are suffering here. No compensation. We said they should work on this our road as compensation and let us have access in and out of Oko. From here to Oko Secondary School is what we are begging them to do for us,” he said.

Also speaking, Ojuke I of Oko-Amakom, Pius Chukwurah, said the contracting firm, Julius Berger, has tried, but reminded the company of its promise to construct the Oko road as compensation.

“Now this Second Niger Bridge is nearing completion, but this our community road has not be attended to. We want them to do this road as part of their corporate social responsibility.

“We don’t have anything, I don’t know why they are delaying doing it for us,” Chukwurah stated.

Another resident who preferred not to be named in print lamented that the construction of the bridge had caused enormous flooding, resulting in the destruction of houses and farmlands.

The resident also said if the access roads were not constructed, the development would aggravate the sufferings of the community dwellers as they would not be able to evacuate their farm produce from the hinterland.

“They should construct access roads that will connect Oko with the old Niger Bridge road. This is because the Second Niger Bridge has blocked us from accessing the bridge.

 “If the access road is not constructed, our farm produce will waste away and the hardship will be aggravated,” he said.

Meanwhile, at a town hall meeting some months ago, Minister of Works, Fashola, described the bridge project as a story of prosperity for the host communities.

Fashola stressed the need for peaceful co-existence to complete the project, adding, “we also need some sacrifice. We have to give some things in order to get some things and, therefore, we need to be patient.”