Ogoni Group Gives Akpabio 14 Days To Return East-West Road Project To NSIA

The Ogoni Peoples Assembly has called on the Minister of Niger-Delta Affairs, Godswill Akpabio to, within 14 days, return the East-West Road project to the Presidential Infrastructure Development Fund under the management of the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority.

The agitation and clamour for rehabilitation/reconstruction of the Warri-Kaiama-Port Harcourt-Eket-Oron Federal High Ways, otherwise called, “East-West Road” has been on for over a decade.

The road, which is one of the most important road in the country apart from being the main topic in all political campaigns, has been on government drawing board for several decades now.

Despite the fact that over 90 per cent of the fund used to build sophisticated roads and cities in Nigeria come from the Niger Delta, this particular East-West Road project has continued to suffer neglect and abandonment.

The neglect of the road project has adversely affected movements and businesses in the region.

Curiously, the 15 kilometre Eleme-Onne section of the East-West road is unarguably the busiest and most economically viable after Apapa in Lagos.

The road carries large volume of heavy traffic involved in haulage from the Onne deep sea port in addition to the gas and petroleum exploration and exploitation activities in that axis.

Again, this road is the major access to other very important Federal Government investments like the Aluminum Smelting Plant at Ikot Abasi, the Fertilizer Plant at Onne, the Onne Sea Port, the Oil and Gas free zone Onne, the Petrochemical/Fertilizer Plant at Aleto, Eleme, IITA Onne, a Campus of the Rivers State University, the two Port Harcourt Refineries, Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) Plant in Bonny, the Bonny Export Terminal, and other large industrial complexes in Rivers, Akwa Ibom and Cross River States.

The ongoing Bodo-Bonny road on its completion, will also empty itself on this same road.

President Muhammad Buhari had after a visit of some Ogoni sons and daughters led by King G.N. K Gininwa, directed that this road be included in projects being funded by the Presidential Infrastructure Development Fund in order to accelerate work pace and ensure timely completion.

The PIDF was set up to fund critical assets and infrastructures of government.

Some of the projects being funded by this PIDF include Lagos-Ibadan express way,with over N600bn; Second Niger Bridge in Onitsha with over N200bn; Kano-Abuja road, recently reviewed from initial N155bn to N790bn; the Mambila/Plateau project which has been negotiated but yet to start.

In a memo from State House Abuja dated 24th September, 2018 with reference SH/COS/03/14/11/002 and titled RE: UPDATE ON THE PRESIDENTIAL INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT FUND, the late Chief of Staff to the President, Abba Kyari, had conveyed Mr Presidents directive on section i to iv of the East-West road to the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs; Minister of Finance and the Managing Director, Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority.

As a follow up to the memo from the office of the President, the Group stated that the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs, PIDF and Contractors handling section i to iv of the East-West road (Gitto, Setraco and RCC), met three different times to discuss legal/commercial documentation to transfer the East-West Road sections i to iv to the PIDF under management of the NSIA.

The Ogoni Group claimed that from information available to it, PIDF was about releasing funds to the Contractors when the Minister for Niger Delta affairs, Godswill Akpabio decided to take back the job to his ministry.

It claimed that while other projects being funded by the PIDF are progressing speedily and are at various stages of completion, work is yet to commence on the East-West Road.

The Group stated, “The refusal of the Minister for Niger Delta Affairs to do anything about this particular Eleme-Onne section of the East-West road has caused the Ogoni people and other Nigerians travelling through that axis, untold hardship and total crippling of their businesses as a journey of just forty five minutes now take as much as six to twenty four hours.

“The Aleto bridge is fast becoming a death trap as trailers and tankers fall inside the river daily.

“Ogonis now take the risk of travelling through Oyigbo with its security challenges to go home or to attend to their businesses in the city.

“The 15 kilometre road has of recent being upgraded and expanded to have three lanes on each side; three flyovers, one each at Akpajo, Refinery junction and Onne.

“The bridge at Aleto has been expanded from 200 metres to now 600 metres across the river.”

While commending Buhari for awarding the Bonny-Bodo road and for his commitment in kick starting the environmental clean up of Ogoni, the Group demanded that the Minister for Niger Delta Affairs immediately returns the deplorable Eleme-onne section of the East-West road back to the PIDF or source for fund to commence this work within 14 working days from the 7th of July, 2021.

It threatened that if the Minister failed to do this, the Group would be compelled irresistibly to embark on a non violent mass civil action without further reminder or extension of time.