By Our Correspondent
Barely two months after Cross River Works Commissioner, Dane Asu told CrossRiverWatch that the state has spent some N20billion to fix federal roads, the figure has risen to N25billion.
Asu disclosed this Monday, during ‘Ayade’s Cross River’, a live program on the state owned broadcasting outfit CRBC TV anchored by a trio of the governor’s media aides, Solomon Asha, Emmanuel Ulayi and Beatrice Akpala where he gave figures on how the sum was spent.
According to Asu, N8 Billion was spent by the administration of former governor Liyel Imoke on these roads, of which N4 Billion was jointly approved and out of which only N250 Million was reimbursed to the state, adding that the incumbent governor Ben Ayade’s administration has raised that standard to “N25 Billion in investment on Federal roads and out of that amount, we have satisfied the requirements leap that will lead to reinvestment and about N19 Billion has been recommended from the Federal Government to carry out that with a promise of reimbursement”.
Describing the arduous process required to get approval to work on Federal Roads and pointing out that the joint National Assembly committee on Finance and Works and carried out our presentation and scored an ‘A’ by presentation of documents and facts, Asu who stressed that the roads were built at a time when heavy duty trucks were not brought into cognizance also said the administration was not resting on its oars so there was need for Cross Riverians to understand the federal government is well informed that the federal roads in the state are in their worst state.
On the level of intervention and the durability of such intervention, the Director of Civil in the Ministry, Godwin Akeke explained that “we need to have an understanding of the soil formation we have here, the Akpabuyo road that is mentioned, we know how deplorable it was last year. The Akpabuyo road from the Atimbo roundabout, it slopes and just after the Navy Barracks you start experiencing a swampy formation running up to the Atimbo Bridge. What we did was to first carry out soil stabilization to stabilize the sub grade at that point with hardcore and raised the level of the road”.
“Before the present administration came on board, we had issues of several failures on our roads within the metropolis, and we took the bull by the horn and I think we have smoother roads/streets now and some new roads that have been created” Akeke added.
However, a trip round town by this reporter showed the “Operation Zero Potholes” launched by Governor Ben Ayade late last year may not be operational anymore as giant potholes are re-emerging in the streets of Calabar.