I’m leaving office a fulfilled man, Rep. Onuigbo Boasts as he embarks on facility tour
The incumbent Member representing Ikwuano/Umuahia Federal Constituency of Abia State, Rt. Hon. Sam Onuigbo has boasted that he is leaving the Green Chamber a fulfilled man, having attempted what neither his predecessors nor past and present Governors could achieve for the state.
The House of Representatives Committee Chairman on Climate Change recounted that the famous
Umuahia/Ikwuano/Ikot-Ekpene federal road, which had been a death trap over the years, never posed a challenge to either the past administrations of Governments nor the Senators up until his emergence as a member of House of representatives.
According to Onuigbo, the dilapidated popular Umuahia/Ikwuano/Ikot-Ekpene road, is undergoing its first massive rehabilitation ever, under his outgoing administration, which, therefore, makes him feel a tinge of fulfilment, hence he has been able to restore the long lost hope and joy of the people.
“I am absolutely leaving the office a fulfilled man. Because, one, this is the first time this road is undergoing this type of reconstruction and, of course, you know that we’ve had the governors from 1999 till date; they’ve come and gone without showing interest in getting this road done. We’ve also had senators, they’ve come and gone; we’ve also had my predecessors, those who served as
members of House of representatives and here I am, fighting for this road, not wanting to leave it in this state, I have every reason to be fulfilled.
Onuigbo who reiterated the continuity of Government, stressed that although he was leaving office in barely two months, but would relentlessly show outright interest in this that promote a meaningful leaving both in the area and State in general.
On the advantages of improved vital facilities, he said:
“We have always told people that Government is a continuum so I’ll continue to engage, continue to be part of what is going on, continue to be part of what is being done because what is most important is to ensure that the facilities in our State and area, things like good roads, water, light, and various things that make life meaningful, we’ll make sure we have them in our area. so I’ll go continue to show interest in what is going on in our area.
Odozio-Obodo stated this, Tuesday, April 11, 2023, when he embarked on an inspection tour of ongoing projects which he facilitated across the Federal Constituency, as well commissioned projects that have been completed.
The climax of the tour was the inspection of the ongoing construction of the Umuahia/Ikwuano/Ikot-Ekpene federal road, the huge gully erosion recovery work at Amawom Oboro, in Ikwuano LGA of the State.
Rep. Onuigbo, while confirming that inadequate funding was the major challenge that mitigated the progress of the road reconstruction, expressed utter optimism that the new funding system would result in lots of progress
“Whilst the new funding system has been largely seen as a game-changer by many, there are still some people who think the reconstruction is moving at a slow pace. Such a view might be due to inaccurate information in the public domain”, he said.
Among the completed projects which were commissioned by the federal Legislator were the massive nine-unit Skills Acquisition Centre at Apumiri Ubakala, a block of six classrooms at Amaoba, a block of three classrooms at Umudike and a Modern Health Center at Oloko.
Block of six classrooms erected in Amaoba Primary School
Asides the other road projects, he also disclosed that the dualization of Umuahia – Umudike 16 kilometer road, and the dualization of Amachara – Express Tower road with a fly-over at the Abia Tower of Peace contract will soon be awarded, as well as an inter-state road, the Achingali (Imo State) – Obizi – Ubakala (Umuahia South, Abia State) which is on-going.
Others he said, include Ibere – Obohia – Nkari (Akwa Ibom), among other projects.
He used the medium to commend the outgoing administration of President Mohammadu Buhari for an impactful leadership as it regards building of infrastructure in the South East
Also, he expressed profound gratitude to the Honourable Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, for listening to his pleas over the years.
He, therefore, described as a big relief, the movement of the project from the annual appropriation where not so much was set aside, to the NNPC Tax Credit Scheme.
Fielding questions from Journalists as it regards the progress made so far in Umuahia/Ikwuano/Ikot-Ekpene road construction, the Project Engineer, HARTLAND CIVIL ENGINEERING LTD, Engr. Hisham Yassin, regretted that the progress of the project was stalled by pausity of funds.
He also lamented that the absence of diesel and bitumen but, however, expressed glimmers of hope as the NNPC Tax Credit Scheme, he said, had brought about some relief, especially in the area of funding.
On the envisaged negative impacts of the rains on the project, the Engineer hinted that:
“We started from the very bad sections going towards Ikot-Ekpene. This is where we want to give our priority; to ensure that the troubled spots are given priority by doing as much work as possible until the heavy rains start.
Adding, he said: “there will be palliative measures in very bad spots, in order to keep the road motorable during the rainy season before reconstruction commenced again after the rains”, he assured.
