The federal government is alleged to have reneged payment of the first tranche amounting to N70 billion to Akwa Ibom government on the repairs of federal roads in the state.
Mr. Ephraim Inyang-Eyen, state Commissioner for Works while fielding questions from reporters in Uyo, weekend, said the Federal Government gave approvals for the work and pledged after verification to pay the money to the state government.
Inyang-eyen said the state government had expended N140 billion to construct and rehabilitate federal roads in the state in the last two and a half years of Governor Udom Emmanuel administration.
He bemoaned the continued delay by the Federal Government to pay back the money was hampering the execution of more road projects in the state.
The Commissioner stated that the Governor Emmanuel’s administration was currently handling 44 major road projects across the state despite the huge amount owed it by the Federal Government, explaining that the non-refund of the money has negatively affected the pace of work and number of roads that would have been done across the state.
He said the achievements recorded by the administration in roads infrastructure and other key areas was due to Governor Emmanuel’s transparency and prudence management of the lean resources accruing to the state, disclosing that state government has rehabilitated 45 internal roads in Uyo, the state capital, eight in Oron and Eket and that such interventions had been extended to other local government areas in the state.
In another development, state Government has threatened to pull down all structures standing on the Right-Of-Way in a bid to checkmate the perennial flooding of Uyo metropolis and other cities in the state.
The commissioner for Works handed down the warning, Saturday, while inspecting the extent of work on Asutan Street, Idongesit Henry Crescent and Effiong Udo Akpan Street, among other adjoining streets in the vicinity.
Inyang-eyen, who addressed property owners, said that the government would bring down any property blocking water channels, but pledged to pay compensation on the affected properties to alleviate the plight of their owners.
He lauded the efforts of Governor Udom Emmanuel in undertaking to build new roads in the metropolis to address flooding and ease the movement of people and goods.
The commissioner said the governor was passionate about opening up the state capital, tackling the challenges of flooding and providing alternative routes for the people, and advised the youths in the communities to cooperate with the contractors handling the project.
