By Emmanuel Uffot
As one in a hurry to achieve in his first term, the state governor Pastor Umo has advised contractors currently handling projects in the state to expedite action on their during the coming dry season to complete them.
He made the call while leading the executive and legislators on a tour of several ongoing projects.
Among the project sites visited were: internal roads at the Dakkada Luxury Estate and the operational perimeter road, taxi way, the International Smart Terminal Building, the Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facility and the Airport Medical Centre at the Victor Attah International Airport.
He noted that the rainy season had delayed the pace of work for some projects, hence the need to ensure that all the days in the dry season are fully utilized.
At the Dakkada Luxury Estate where he inspected the internal roads, Governor Eno lauded the level of progress at the site and commended the contractors for advancing the projects even without the necessary mobilisation.
He said, “I would like to thank the contractors, especially the ones that have not been mobilized but they have shown good faith. I think they have done a fantastic job and when we go back to the office, we will try within the next two weeks to ensure that they are mobilized so that they can take full advantage of the dry season.”
At the New Terminal Building, the Governor acknowledged that there was a soft opening of the facility upon completion of the major construction works and remarked that it became expedient for the two arms of government to have a first hand assessment to ascertain the finishing touches required to enable its full takeoff.
The governor who extracted commitment that the facility would be fully ready by April 2024, after being briefed by the contractor in charge, promised to make funds available for the required fine-tuning.
“I had to come here personally with members of my Exco and members of the State House of Assembly so that we can see things for ourselves and know where we needed to direct funding. Yes, we had a soft opening and now there is still some work to be done. So we budgeted for it. Thankfully I came with the Honourable Speaker and leadership of the House,” he said.
On the MRO which, according to the governor, has been on course since 2002, he reaffirmed the resolve of his administration to ensure that the facility begins full operation and give the state the economic benefits it was intended.
“As I campaigned for governorship , we knew there were some projects that we must finish for Akwa Ibom people to derive the full benefit. It’s a relay race, people run and give you the baton to run to the finish line. I am believing and hoping that our team here will be the one to get to the finish line and be part of the history that has already been made,” he added.
Earlier, Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Udeme Ottong, commended the Governor for running a transparent and open government, stressing that the funds appropriated for projects, have been judiciously utilized and pledged the legislature’s continued support to ensure the timely delivery of democratic dividends to the people.
Also, the State PDP Chairman, Elder Aniekan Akpan, commended the Governor for keeping to his promise to the people of the State, stressing that the party is proud of his development strides and lauded his initiative of taking out time to carry out an on- the- spot assessment of projects to determine the extent of execution before appropriating more funds to ensure that both new and old projects are completed.
The Commissioner for Lands; Capt. Iniobong Ekong (retd.) in his overview of the projects noted that Dakadda Luxury Estate internal roads of about 16.8 km are being executed by eight contractors and the pace of work has been commendable.
Some of these projects were embarked upon by the immediate past Governor, and he has promised to continue with all the projects left by his predecessor while also expecting his own.
He pledged that the contractors will take advantage of the dry season to get the job done to pave way for the next phase of the job execution which would be the actual construction of the houses.
