By Ushang Ewa
CrossRiverWatch has compiled a list of seven projects and factories, initiated and completed by the Governor Ben Ayade’s administration.
Five out of the seven projects are either moribund or abandoned while the other two are performing below capacity.
The abandoned ones include the Cross River Toothpick factory in Ekori, Yakurr Local Government Area which has been locked up since October 2020; the Calabar Pharmaceutical Company (CalaPharm) where calls were made for employment since April 2018, but till date, remains under lock and key.
Also, the Roofing Tiles Factory in Ogoja has remained under lock after the Governor visited in January 2020 and test production commenced while Cross River Chicken Processing Factory (CalaChicka) has remained under lock after birds were processed there in December 2020.
Others include the Banana Plantation at Odukpani Local Government Area where over 99 percent of the suckers have either died or withered; the Cross River Garment Factory as well as the Ultramodern Rice Seeds and Seedlings Manufacturing Center in Calabar which are operating below capacity.
Meanwhile, a video footage obtained by CrossRiverWatch shows the toothpick factory which is said to have been producing toothpicks that cannot compete with other brands, deserted. The quality is said to have been a sharp contrast from the promise made by Mr. Ayade.
“The toothpicks were not smooth and when he (Ayade) visited, he promised to procure a machine that will make them smooth,” a Government House official told CrossRiverWatch in an unpublished interview in December 2020.