Briga News Nigeria
The Ijaw People’s Development Initiative (IPDI) has faulted alleged false claims of the Delta State commissioner for works, Charles Aniagwu about Ayakoromo bridge in the Arise Tv interview on Friday, describing the bridge project as an already completed job by the Governor Sheriff Oborevwori led-administration.
The group was also infuriated when the works commissioner stated that Ayakoromo bridge is a 612km bridge, in a supposed 4km bridge project, said the so-called works commissioner embarrassed the governor of the state in his interview.
In a statement, the IPDI president Comrade Ozobo Austin said that the project has been stalled, with no significant work done recently, stressing that contracting Firm Setraco Nigeria Limited had pulled its equipment out of site due to poor funding. However, this contradicts Aniagwu’s earlier claims that the project was at the stage of completion.
The rights group also said that the governor has taken Ijaw people for granted for failing to prioritise the development of Ijaw oil producing and riverine communities, citing that the successive governors of Delta State from Uduaghan till date were only interested in Ijaw bulk votes during elections.
The group said that the Governor had not paid properties and houses demolished in the project site up till now, alleging that it had been over six months when the contracting firm pulled out its equipment and staff from the site.
They reiterated that the affected residents whose houses were demolished in the project site were rendered homeless and were facing serious hardship.
The statement reads, “The company left with all its equipment. Ayakoromo bridge is not close to completion after twelve years of being initiated. The Delta State Works commissioner misrepresented facts in his Arise Tv interview. No pile cap and top beams have been constructed. Engineers of the first Firm (Zerock) and the second construction company (Setraco) only succeeded in using twelve years to complete pillars across the river. There is no work ongoing on the site as we speak now”.
The IPDI’s counter reaction had raised concerns about the accuracy of information provided by the state government regarding its projects and other sundry issues raised in the Arise Tv show by Charles Aniagwu.
Meanwhile, the Ayakoromo bridge project is a critical infrastructural project aimed at connecting riverine communities in the state. Its completion is eagerly anticipated by residents, who hope it will improve their access to basic services and economic opportunities.
The group raised issues of bias in the project allocation, funding and appointment in Oborevwori’s administration, citing that the three flyover bridges he sited in his Uvwie local government area are closed to completion because he is given the jobs total funding which commenced less than a year.
“We expect the governor and its commissioner for works to stop deceiving the general public and provide proper funding for the Ayakoromo bridge project, like the way the governor is committed to funding of the three bridges and other road projects in his two communities, Okpe and Uvwie and his local government area”, they added.
However, the group’s statement had also sparked calls for greater transparency and accountability in the management of public projects by the Delta State government.
