RIVERS: Biting more than can be chewed on November 02, 2013 / in Special Report 4:01 am THE case in Rivers State in relation to state roads is what many close watchers have termed “over ambition”. The common feeling is that the Governor Rotimi Amaechi’s administration set for itself an overbearing award of road contracts with a slow pace of execution. Why some of the roads have been completed, it is not happy story for most areas. On its web portal, the Governor attested to “over 170 roads, more of which are in the rural areas being built with drainages. Some of the major roads have been converted to dual carriageways with walkways, streetlights and greenery as well as drainages, most of them underground. Others are being converted to six lane highways.” The Governor’s web portal report further claimed that a lot of other rural roads and internal roads in some Local Government Areas amounting to over 70 per cent of the Road projects under the Amaechi administration have been completed and some still ongoing. BAD-ROAD The reality on ground however indicates that the most of the completion efforts have been concentrated on upgrade, specifically, dualisation of existing roads including some flyovers in the state, most of them concentrated in the Port Harcourt metropolis and its adjoining localities. “The interest in delivering six lane highways and major projects as the Trans-Kalabari Road, Ogoni/Andoni/Opobo Unity Road, and a number of associated bridges to satisfactorily link Rivers upland to the waterways remains a mere promissory note and none may ever materialise in the life of this administration” reacted Franklin Anwusonye of the civil society group, Nigerian Democratic Awareness Forum. In fairness to the State Government, Anwusonye said, “It is not that this administration has fared so badly on roads delivery. The misplaced focus is that they have taken more than they can chew, swelling the state debt profile even to the neglect of some of the major roads that should have come top on the bill in the choice of which road project should be delivered first.”One of such neglected major roads to the chagrin of Port Harcourt residents is the Iwofe Road which is home to several residents and major companies including the naval base NNS Pathfinder who suffer untold hardship plying the road every day. Over the prolong abandonment of the Iwofe Road, more than 100 residents of Rumuolemini who have found a better alternative is the shorter waterway route between Port Harcourt City to their communities died on the Rumuolemini Rivers in a boat tragedy a couple of years back. In spontaneous response to the Rumuolemini tragedy, the State Government declared to award its reconstruction. More than two years after, Iwofe Road remains in ruins and the suffering for the road motorist and commuters continue as work on the road moves with tardy appeal. Up in the Town axis, residents in Creek-New Layout Road and the stretch from Abuja to New Market in Borokiri suffer same fate as Iwofe’s. After about three years of abandonment by the contractor, the State Works Commissioner, Victor Giardom only a couple of months back admitted that the foundation of the road contract was faulty and requires redesign and a fresh start. According to the Works Commissioner, Government cannot keep mum and allow the road constructed on such faulty foundation. So, the road remains in ruins, already opened up and causing perennial flooding into living homes more than three years after award of contract which starts afresh if the contractor eventually returns to site. On the strength of such irregularities, the State Government has been various accused of partisan award of road contracts to alleged incompetent political associates who in most cases allegedly abandon the contracts or turn out shoddy jobs after collecting substantial mobilisation, critics of the Amaechi’s government emphasise. The state of roads in Rivers would not be complete without the collapse of the Zero Pothole policy of the Amaevchi’s administration. At inception in 2007, the Governor released of N2 billion to institute Operation Zero Pothole for a road maintenance arm that would ensure that all major roads in the state are in good shape all season without a trace of pot-hole. Harping on the policy failure as a point of criticism, a group, the Rivers Integrity Forum led by Warigbane Ezekiel lamented that, “Not long after later, the several potholes Amaechi inherited have turned into giant craters and the money has not been accounted for. In spite of the challenges, criticism and mass disappointment by the populace, the Amaechi’s administration, particularly the Commissioner for Works, Giadom maintains that it is not broke and remains committed to completion of most of its ongoing road contracts before it hands power to a new government in 2015. Aside the challenges with state owned roads, Rivers axis of the East West Road and that of 11 years running and still uncompleted contract on the Bodo-Bonny Road both also tell a story of federal Government’s non commitment to completion of its road projects in Rivers Benue: Contractors not yet mobilised for new roads Since the advent of the Governor Gabriel Suswam led administration in Benue state in 2007, the state has witnessed an unparalleled development in the area of urban and rural roads construction and rehabilitation. In fact, of all the attainments of the administration, the construction and rehabilitation of roads across the state remains one of the cardinal areas the government has recorded resounding successes and achievements giving the over 31 different road projects embarked upon by the government in the three senatorial zones of the state. ACCIDENT The over 1, 200 kilometers of different category of roads and bridges, valued at over N48.7billion, awarded by the administration remains one of the tangible dividends of democracy the administration would bequest to the people of the state as it gradually winds up in the coming 19 months. Suffice it to state here that while over 65 percent of these roads have been completed, others are at various stages of completion. Outside these ongoing and completed projects, the administration also recently awarded eight new 187 kilometers of urban and rural road contracts supported by requisite bridges valued at over N18billion. Though the contractors have not been mobilized to site, the state government, according to the Commissioner for Works and Transport, Mr. John Ngbede, “would soon mobilize the contractors to site in order to ensure that the projects were executed and delivered on schedule.” The state government undoubtedly has invested huge resources to the execution of these projects, sadly some of these multi million Naira road projects have already started failing. In these category of roads are the N1.4billion, 54 kilometer Eke Olengbecho-Ugbokolo-Otukpa-Orokam road which has failed less than three years of the completion of the project. Another in this category is the yet to be completed N3.6billion, 55.61 kilometer Otukpo-Utonkon-Igumale road which has completely failed despite the current status of the contract. Though it must be stated clearly that the condition of these roads is no fault the contractors who cannot be professional held responsible for their failure. Perhaps the state government should be blamed for allowing heavy duty trucks ply the rural roads that were meant for light traffic all in a bid to by pass the failed federal roads that were abandoned over a long period of time by the federal government. Another road project in Benue state that seemed jinx and has continued to generate controversy is the Daudu-Gbajimba road project which was reportedly awarded by the then governor George Akume’s administration but abandoned; though it was alleged that the administration claimed that the project was completed and delivered.
Posted on: Sat, 02 Nov 2013 06:10:55 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015