Senator Enyinnaya Harcourt Abaribe
Senator Abaribe accuses FG of deliberately abandoning federal roads in South East
[From BONIFACE OKORO, Umuahia]
Senate Minority Leader, Enyinnaya Harcourt Abaribe, has accused the President Muhammadu Buhari-led government of deliberately abandoning federal roads in the South East, and leaving them in a state of despair.
While lamenting the dilapidated roads in the South East, particularly in Abia State, Abaribe who represents Abia South Senatorial Zone in the 9th Assembly of the senate, described the neglect of South East roads as being politically-motivated, not because of default engineering designs.
Abaribe who spoke in Umuahia during the Abia branch of Nigerian Society of Engineers’ (NSE) Week after being honoured by the group, revealed that when road contracts in the South East are awarded for rehabilitation, they are not funded.
Abaribe said various administrations at the federal level have abandoned the South East roads, adding ‘my own thinking is, it is deliberate.’
“Aba – Ikot Ekpene road is only 24 miles. In 2007, it was still motorable. I insisted we do it and in 2008, it was put in the budget at the cost of N6bn. It was contained in the budget, but no money was released,” the Senate Minority Leader said.
He disclosed that even when he and Sen. T. A. Orji had discussions with the current Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Godswill Akpabio, to do the road and send the bill to the federal government for refund, Akpabio only did the Akwa Ibom end and collected the refund from the federal government. It is the same thing with Umuahia – Ikot Ekpene federal road,” he added.
Other federal roads in bad condition, he noted, include Enugu – Onitsha federal road and others and queried: “Who are those in the Ministry of Finance that have refused to release the fund?”
“We have continued to suffer. It is a real problem. We have to play politics of faith and make sure we are there.”
Speaking with newsmen later, Abaribe called on Gov. Okezie Ikpeazu to use NSE as consultant in building in Abia, “hence putting the burden on them,” while urging the Nigerian engineers’ body to design a way of making movement in Abia easy.
On the Anambra governorship election scheduled for tomorrow, Saturday, November 6, 2021, the Senator urged Anambra electorate to turn out en masse to vote for their preferred candidates.
He explained that doing otherwise would amount to giving others a great opportunity to enthrone their choice in the Agu Awka Government House.
“If you don’t vote, you have also voted as you have given those who voted the opportunity to elect their choice,” he warned.
