Following the dilapidated state of Federal Roads in Abia State, Governor Okezie Ikpeazu has alleged a deliberate attempt by the Federal Government to cripple the socio economic life wire of the state.
The Governor who made this known during a Media Briefing at the Governor’s Lodge Aba, decried the state of Federal Government roads in Abia State saying that the state would have been completely cut off from neighboring states if not for his adminstration’s intervention in constructing alternative major economic routes to mitigate the challenges faced by the people.
He disclosed that although the state has not recieved any refund on account of its interventions on Federal roads across Abia, the State government would continue to push it’s demand for Federal government intervention on Abia roads for the interest of the people.
Ikpeazu said: “At some point, i started feeling that there is a conspiracy to cripple the socio- economic live-wire of a state like Abia.
“Quickly take your mind back to 2014, through which road would you have gone to Ikot Ekpene? You are in Aba, you can’t assess Port Harcourt, Ikot Ekpene, Enugu. You are in Umuahia, you can’t go to Ikot Ekpene so we are supposed to have been completely isolated as a people living in Siberia and left to die.
“It took the wisdom of this adminstration to quickly open the Udo-dino road, that is the popular road that bring people from Akwa-ibom to Aba which constitutes 60% of our clientele in terms of trade and commerce in Ariaria aha Ahia Ohuru”.
Governor Ikpeazu who reeled out the success stages of the roads embarked upon by his administration, said that 41 roads have been completed and about 20 ongoing projects in Aba while 95% of the roads completed were still in good condition.
He said that construction was ongoing on Port Harcourt road to make it a six-lane road, adding that the work would commence with construction of two lanes to ease movement on the road before its final completion.
Ikpeazu said that the government had mobilised and reached an understanding with the contractor handling the Osisioma Fly Over project to complete the project before the end of the dry season.
He reiterated his government’s commitment to complete the pending roads in a record time adding that his administration would mobilise contractors in order to maximize the dry season window and complete road constructions across the state.
Governor Ikpeazu explained that the roads in Aba are done in clusters to drive economic needs and value and debunked the 6 billion naira fund controversy allegedly paid for the construction of Faulks road.
He said: “We are building roads in clusters to fast track development, ventilate the city as well as enhance trade and commerce.
“We want to build solid infrastructure that would promote our desire to transform Aba and the state.
“We insist that proper soil analysis has to be done to determine if pavement technology will be done on the road and construction of double arm drainage to achieve efficient flood management.”
He called on Abians to keep faith with his administration and expressed the resolve of the state government to deliver lasting infrastructure to the people of Abia.
