The Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) has inaugurated the reconstructed Ndioro-Ntalakwu and its adjoining road networks, measuring 18.25 kilometers, in Ikwuano Local Government Area (LGA) of Abia State.
The commission also inaugurated another reconstructed 5.5-km road, linking Umudike with Olokoro in Umuahia South LGA.
In a speech at the ceremony held at the Ikwueke Central School, Umuigu, on Thursday – yesterday, March 13 – the Minister for Regional Development, Mr. Abubakar Momoh, expressed delight that NDDC is delivering on its mandate of regional transformation.
Momoh advised State governments and the regional interventionist commissions recently inaugurated by the Federal Government to enter into strong partnership with NDDC to fast-track the development of their respective States and the region in general.
He assured that the present management of the commission, led by Dr. Samuel Ogbuku, is poised to establish a culture of delivering the commission’s projects so that successive managements would key in thereby ensuring that NDDC projects are no longer abandoned.
The minister directed the commission to undertake the immediate renovation of the school, venue of the event, said to have been built in the 1950s and presently in a sorry state of dilapidation.
In his remarks, Gov. Alex Otti of Abia thanked the commission for the number of projects it has executed in the state, which have contributed to the expansion of infrastructural projects in the State and enhancement of the people’s wellbeing.
Otti, represented by his Chief of Staff, Caleb Ajagba, expressed the readiness of the State government to collaborate with the commission and other interventionist agencies for the rapid transformation of the state.
He also expressed gratitude to President Bola Tinubu and NDDC “for their unwavering commitment to the transformation of the Niger Delta region”.
Otii noted that the reconstructed roads would help to boost the transportation of people and agricultural produce from the rural communities to the cities, as part of the measures to check food shortage, charging the benefitting communities to take ownership of the roads to ensure that they serve their purpose.
In his speech, Dr. Ogbuku reassured that the commission is committed to fostering healthy partnership with the States to drive the process of infrastructure development of the region.
According to him, the NDDC projects are merely complementing the efforts of the State governments in tackling the infrastructure deficits in the region.
Giving credit for the numerous projects executed by the present management and board of the commission to President Tinubu, Ogbuku said: “The president’s Renewed Hope Agenda is practical and that is why you are witnessing practical outcomes that are beneficial to the citizenry.”
He promised that more projects would be initiated by the commission to ensure that the three senatorial districts of Abia benefitted from its numerous transformational projects.
Chairman of the board, Mr. Chiedu Ebie, affirmed the commission’s commitment to discharging its mandate, geared towards making life more meaningful for the people of the region.
Similarly, Chairman of the Senate Committee on NDDC, Sen. Achibong Ekpenyong, reiterated that the National Assembly would continue to give the commission the necessary legislative support to ensure that it delivers on its mandate to the region and its people.
Ekpenyong, who led other members of the committee to the event, said that more people-oriented projects are underway for the region, in line with the development objective of the federal government.
Sen. Austin Akobundu and Rep. Obi Aguocha, representing Abia Central Senatorial District and Ikwuano/Umuahia North/Umuahia South Federal Constituency of Abia, respectively, commended NDDC for the good job it is doing in the state.
They, however, requested for more intervention in other critical areas of both physical infrastructure and human capital development.
Earlier in an address of welcome, the Abia Representative on the Board of the Commission, Chief Dimgba Eruba, disclosed that the NDDC has executed meaningful projects that have made life more meaningful for the people.
Eruba said the reconstructed roads would help to improve transportation and enhance commerce and socio-economic development of the area.
He thanked the president for giving the commission the enablement and leverage to deliver the dividend of democracy to the people and pleaded for more projects to be cited in Abia.
In a speech, the Executive Director, Projects, Mr. Victor Antai, said the road, covering 18.25-km, was awarded in 2019 and commended a former House of Representatives member, Chief Emeka Atuma, who hails from the area, for attracting and ensuring completion of the project.
Antai also said the second phase of the road project in the area, linking Oboro and Olokoro in Umuahia South LGA, covers 5.5 kilometres, pointing out that the completion of the two roads and other adjoining roads would help to boost agriculture and commerce in the area.
He added that the long stretch of the solar-powered streetlights on the Ndioro-Ntalakwu Road, being part of the contract, would enhance illumination and security of lives and property in the area.
“With these projects, NDDC is making a statement that it is making a difference in the region,” Antai said.
The Traditional Ruler of Oboro, Eze Larry Agwu, said the reconstruction of the roads would help the benefitting agrarian communities to transport their produce to the urban areas for sale.
He appealed to the commission and federal government to also intervene on other roads and school infrastructures that are begging for attention, in order to make life more meaningful for the people.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that other prominent people from the South-East at the ceremony, included Sen. Enyinnaya Abaribe and Sen. Victor Umeh, representing Abia South and Anambra Central, respectively, and traditional rulers from the two LGAs, amongst others.
