Apologise to Abians over media outburst on Osisioma fly over, Otti tells Gov Ikpeazu

Apologise to Abians over media outburst on Osisioma fly over, Otti tells Gov Ikpeazu

By Steve Oko

A chieftain of the All Progressive Congress APC in Abia State, Dr. Alex Otti has flayed Gov. Okezie Ikpeazu over his recent media comment on the Osisioma ‘fly-over’ where the governor while responding to inquiries, retorted that people who have no vehicles should not bother him with the update on the project.

Otti described the governor’s outburst as insulting to the people of Abia, and urged the governor to tender apologies.

The former banker in a statement by his Special Adviser, Media and Publicity, Mr. Ferdinand Ekeoma, reminded Gov. Ikpeazu that the project was being financed with public funds, hence, Abians whether or not they own vehicles have the right to demand accountability.

“Dear Governor Ikpeazu, I watched with rude shock and unbelievable disappointment your responses to some of the questions posed to you during a radio interview program concerning some lingering projects in Abia.

“Permit me to react on two subject matters; Faulks RIoad and Osisioma Flyover.

During your interview, you admitted releasing extra N2.5 billion to the contractors handling Faulks Road. If this sum is added to the N6.8 billion which your government previously claimed was spent on the construction of the road, we would be talking of N9.3billion spent on the construction of a road of less than 6 kilometers.

“Whichever way you look at it, the Faulks road project has not only become an embarrassment to your government, but has obviously gulped very questionable amount of resources, while still remaining a nightmare to road users.

“You and some of your appointees have now been left with the difficult task of continuously explaining why the road collapsed. Tile Sellers, Truck drivers, hot water, and indeed all Abians have been blamed for the collapse of the road. You may not be embarrassed, but Abia people are.

“What happened at Faulks Road would have been avoided if Sincerity, Transparency and Competence were taken into consideration in the award of the road contract as I have always advised, bearing in mind its strategic importance.

” Your government has also refused to come clean on who the contractor is and what the contract says about failure of the road before its commissioning. We must get our money back from whoever this contractor is, if not now, then later.

“Responding to a question on why the Osisioma Flyover Project which has become a subject of national comedy has remained uncompleted, seven years into your administration, you retorted “Does the Flyover concern you people? Were you people the ones that asked me to build the Flyover? Was I not the one that took the decision to build it? It has now moved from Center Table to Flyover. I was the one that woke up, designed my thing, brought White people and asked them to build the Flyover for me, and I have been paying them according to my income and they have been doing it. You can see that it’s stretching, and it’s at stone base level, and you people keep asking me about Flyover. Some of the people that are asking me about the Flyover don’t even have cars. Are they going to climb the Flyover on foot? What concerns them with Flyover?

“Haba Mr. Governor, your tirade was poor, uncouth, rude, thoughtless, disrespectful and very demeaning. You displayed a stone age mien of an autocratic emperor. You gave the impression that Abia is your personal estate that can be administered as it pleases you, without any objection from any corner.

“You forgot that the resources being used to execute the Flyover project belong to Abians, hence their right to ask questions and demand answers.

“You gave the impression that the outrageously costly Flyover project which has been going at a snail speed for over six years is your personal project being constructed by your personal resources which no one should question. But we know that is not the case.

“Above all Mr. Governor, you demeaned Abians who do not have cars, and concluded that lack of ownership of cars should take away their democratic rights to demand for the completion of the Flyover project which has hindered movements and other activities on that part of the expressway.”

 

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