Gov Otu Seeks More Funding For Cross River As Senate C’ttee On East-West Road Visits State

Governor Bassey Otu of Cross River State has called for more funding for the completion of the East-West Road — a major highway that connects several states in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria — and other infrastructure projects in the state.

Otu made the call on Tuesday when he hosted the Senate ad-hoc committee on the East-West Road at the Dan Archibong Lodge in Calabar.

The governor said that the East-West Road is one of several critical infrastructures that have been left to decay in Nigeria over time. He also noted that the road is essential for the transportation of goods and services in the Niger Delta region.

“Even in this period of palliatives, if there is anything worse than not having the palliatives, then it is when the main arteries that connect the state and should help in carrying the palliatives are not there,” Otu said.

Otu also called for modifications to the East-West Road drawings into Calabar to avoid traffic snarl as witnessed in some major cities in the country.

In addition, Otu drew the attention of the committee to the Calabar-Ogoja Expressway, which he said, is in no better shape.

He expressed confidence that the President Tinubu administration will rise to the occasion and provide the much-needed infrastructural repairs and upgrades.

Otu also noted that Cross River State has suffered over the Green Tree Treaty which ceded part of the state to a foreign country, leading to loss of its littoral assets.

“We have borne and bearing the pain of the country over the Greentree Agreement and it is only fair that Nigeria does right by our state. We need more interventions and my hope is that your committee, though ad-hoc in nature, will present our case to the Senate and ease our burden,” he said.

Senator Abdul Ningi, the chairman of the Senate Ad-hoc Committee on the East-West Road, said that the East-West Road which is supposed to represent fairness and justice of a major economic hub of the country has not met that aspiration even by four succeeding presidents starting from Olusegun Obasanjo, Umaru Musa Yarádua, Goodluck Jonathan and Muhammadu Buhari.

Ningi said that the committee has traversed the East-West Road from Bayelsa, Delta, Rivers, Akwa Ibom and now Cross River, and found that the road is in a state of disrepair. He also noted that there is a lack of synergy between the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing, the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA) and the states which the road passes through.

Ningi said that the committee will hold a 2-day public hearing on why the East-West Road has remained uncompleted. He also said that the committee will investigate the contractors who have been awarded contracts to work on the road.

Ningi bemoaned the state of the Calabar-Itu Highway, saying that he has never seen such a bad road anywhere. He said that thousands of trucks are stuck in traffic on the road, and that it took the committee over six hours to travel on the road.

Ningi said that something urgent needs to be done about the East-West Road, including the fifth and final stage of the road which is the Calabar-Oron end of the road. He praised Governor Otu for his administrative acumen and hoped that he will bring his legislative experience to bear in the affairs of the state.

Other members of the Senate Ad-hoc Committee on the East-West Road who were present at the meeting include Senator Ikra Bilbis, the clerk of committee, Foluke Ogunbayo, and the South-South Zonal Director of Federal Ministry of Works and Housing, Engr. Clement Ogbuagu.