By Friday Idachaba
Lokoja – Kogi House of Assembly has urged the state government to fund the completion of Dekina township road project to check accidents and further loss of lives on the road.
The House gave the advice following the adoption of a motion on the matter moved by Moses Edoko-Ododo (APC-Dekina-Biraidu) at plenary on Wednesday in Lokoja.
Edoko-Ododo said that the road was constructed in 1971 by the then General Yakubu Gowon regime, adding that it was the only road linking Dekina Local Government headquarters and Bassa Local Government Area.
According to him, the road also links other parts of Kogi East Senatorial District.
The lawmaker said Dekina town, as a result of its topography, had suffered serious ecological challenges such as gully erosion and bad road network.
He expressed concern that the challenges had hindered social and economic activities of the people of the area.
Edoko-Ododo said the importance of the town and its precarious nature made the immediate past administration in the state to award the contract for the construction of the township road to ECC Engineering and Co. Ltd.
The legislator noted that work on the project stalled due to non release of funds for the contractor after excavation work.
He said the road had been left at the mercy of gully erosion which ravaged the road and made it impassable as well as death trap.
“This condition has not only limited movement within the community but also made the road a death trap for residents and travellers who ply it.”
The Minority Leader of the Assembly, Mr Godwin Osiyi (PDP-Ogori-Magongo), seconded the motion and urged that it should be accorded urgent attention.
He said, ‘In view of its importance to the socio-economic life of the people and strategic position of the road, it should be accorded urgent attention.”
Mr Victor Omofaiye (APC-Ijumu), former House committee chairman on works said the N150 million contract for the 8.3-kilometre road was included for implementation in the 2016 budget but said, ”not a kobo was released.”
Omofaiye suggested that the contract should be either re-awarded or money released to the contractor to complete the project after a review or appraisal of the contract.
The Deputy Speaker, Hassan Abdullahi (APC-Dekina-Okura), in his contribution, said the motion was overdue, adding that the road had gone totally bad.
The House adopted the motion, following majority voice votes while the Speaker, Alhaji Umar Imam commended Omofaiye for the clarification and
urged other committee chairmen to be abreast of happenings in their respective oversight functions.