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Obinna Ichita & Okezie Ikpeazu. |
The Abia State Government has said that the Member representing Aba South State Constituency in the House of Assembly, Obinna Ichita is merely advertising his crass ignorance following the viral letter he recently wrote to the state Governor.
Our
correspondent reports that Ichita through a law firm, Adulbert Legal Services,
led by
his
Counsel, Barr Aloy Ejimakor in a letter dated 28th February, 2023 requested the
state government led by Ikpeazu to furnish him with important information on
financing of notable projects in his constituency.
Ichita
through Ejimakor demanded, "The
accounting details of how the Government of Abia State spent the N27.4 billion
(Twenty-Seven Billion, Four Hundred Thousand Naira (or the equivalent sum in
dollar) which the Government of Abia State had received in full from the World
Bank for road construction and erosion control projects in Aba specifically
Port-Harcourt Road, Uratta Road, Obohia Road, Ohanku Road and Ngwa Road.
"The
name and business address(es) of the Contractor(s) that executed any of the
projects mentioned in the preceding paragraph; and copies of the contract
awards documents and the cost of the execution of each project."
In
the letter, Ejimakor stated that Ichita made the request for information in
pursuant to the provisions of Freedom of Information Act, which requires
compliance within strict deadlines and demanded the Governor's timely response.
Abia
State Government in a statement signed by the Secretary to State Government
(SSG), Barr. Chris Ezem urged Ichita to get himself acquainted with the topic
he wrote letter on, as everything he said showed high level ignorance on the issue he talked about.
Ezem said that Abia government did not receive any such sum stated by Ichita from the World Bank for road construction and erosion control projects in Aba, specifically Port Harcourt Road, Uratta Road, Obohia Road, Ohanku Road and Ngwa Road.
"Your
client being a principal officer of Abia State House of Assembly which has
performed oversight function over several activities in the state should know
better or at least should have made his investigations well before his hurried
ejaculation.
"At
this juncture it will be right to stop the response until his question is put
correctly but to show him that there are no skeletons in the cupboard and to
prove that he is merely advertising his crass ignorance, let me educate you
both on the true state of the project in question.
"The
contract was for the 'Construction of Flood Mitigation Measures at Uratta and
Umuagbai Flood Plains in Aba Municipality.' The contract was awarded to Messrs
Hartland Nig. Ltd/NBHH JV of 23 House 24, Usman Halilu Street, Life camp, Abuja
after a rigorous International Competitive Bidding process supervised by the
highest procurement committee of the World Bank at Washington DC, at the value
of N27.4b.
"The
contract was signed on 30th April 2020. At the NAFEX exchange rate of $1 to
N413 this contract sum was $66,394,939,22. The site was handed over to the
contractor in the first week of June 2020 and the contract duration was 30
months from the time of site take over," Ezem replied Ejimakor.
The
SSG added that the scope of work was for underground box culverts from Uratta
pond through Port Harcourt Road, then along Ngwa Road and Obohia road to
discharge storm water into Aba River at the end of Ngwa Road, and for the
reconstruction of Obohia and Ngwa Roads after the box culvert works.
"The
only road construction components of this principal contract was for Ngwa Road,
Obohia Road and a section of Uratta Road from Uratta pond to Port Harcourt Road
by Ngwa Road. This contract did not at any time include the construction of all
of Port Harcourt Road or Uratta Road or even Ohanku Road as you and your client
have erroneously claimed.
"This
project was executed under a World Bank loan facility managed by Abia State
Nigeria Erosion and Watershed Management Project, ABS-NEWMAP. The official life
span of the intervention was to end by June 30th, 2022.
"The
World Bank and the State Governor met severally and settled that since the
World Bank would no longer extend the life span of the intervention beyond June
2022, and would not abandon any project; "and since the State Government
does not have the funds to complete the project if the World Bank withdrew by
June 2022, that closure works be proposed which would be done to ensure that
the site is left safe and devoid of any environmental and social safeguards
issues. This was done by the state Government," Ezem said.
He
said that in this closure works the
state government included the construction of Onyemaechi Road, a section of
Ogwo Road, and other connecting roads to
Ugwunagbor water front starting from Ngwa Road; Construction of an underground
discharge culvert from Ogwo/Mbaise Road to Aba River, Construction of Okoro
Street, Ibadan Street, and Uratta Road.
He
equally mentioned others included as the de-silting of the Underground tunnel
from School Road through Asa triangle to Cemetry and Uratta pond; the tunnel
from Ibadan Street ponds 1 and 2 through Ohanku and Owerre Aba to Aba River,
de-silting of the major School Road open Channel acroos Ahia Ohuru into Aba
River.
The
SSG said that the construction of an underground box culvert from Uratta pond through
Crystal Park to Obohia Road, discharging at Umuagbai pond and the discharge
structures from Umuagbai pond into Aba River which were done with large side
drains to take runoff from these areas into Aba River were also included.
According
to him, "having reduced the scope of the initial works, the state
government refunded the sum of $15m to the World Bank which represented the
components that would no longer be done. The new contract sum became
N19,279,237,117.68.
"Out
of the above stated sum, the contractor earned the sum of N17,491,888,544.93.
So far, the contractor has been paid the sum of N16,825,965,056.71. The
outstanding payment is N665,923,488.22. Details of these payments are available
for inspection at Abia NEWMAP office any day."
He
told Ejimakor that his client, Ichita was never present at any of the several
community engagements with his beloved constituents who he claims to be
fighting for.
"Your
client was never present at all the appearances of Abia NEWMAP before all the
committees he was a member of (appropriation, environment, etc throughout his
stay in the house). Your client does not know the real worth of the works being
done for his constituents.
"Your
client does not know the status of the works. Your client never showed concern
throughout the troubling times when the state almost lost this project. Your
client has severally made bogus claims of how $54m or $56m or any amount he
dreams of had been given by the World Bank for his constituents.
"Your
client had also claimed that the state government got $800m to share to
indigent citizens of Abia State from the World Bank. All these are in the
public domain. At each instance the state government responded with facts and
figures, yet he could not even use the simple “google search” in the phone he
is carrying about to educate himself.
"This
is the kind of client you have retained. He will certainly bring you to shame.
This is the person who wants to be deputy governor of Abia State. His
principals are already tired of his loquacious attitude," the SSG said
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