By Nathaniel Zacchaeus, Abuja
The Senate yesterday mandated its Committee on Works to investigate the contractors handling the repairs of the Odukpani-Itu Highway to ascertain the reasons for its delays.
The red chamber also asked the panel to assess the utilisation of funds allocated for the project over subsequent budget cycles.
The red chamber also directed the Committee to summon relevant agencies, including the Federal Ministry of Works and the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA).
The Senate said the contractors involved in the project should provide detailed reports on the highway’s status and the challenges being encountered.
It urged the Federal Government to prioritise the immediate completion of the highway to alleviate the people’s suffering and unlock the region’s economic potential.
It also enjoined the Federal Government to limit its policy on using concrete for road construction to new contracts and allow existing ones to be completed using asphalt to hasten the pace of work on the projects.
The Senate’s resolutions followed its consideration and adoption of a motion of urgent national importance titled “Urgent need to investigate the slow pace of work on the Odukpani-Itu Federal Highway in Cross Rivers State.”
The motion was sponsored by Senator Asuquo Ekpeyong and co-sponsored by Senator Ekong Sampson.
In his lead debate, Ekpeyong said the Senate is aware that the Odukpani-Itu Federal Highway is a major highway in Cross River State that connects Calabar, the first capital of Nigeria, to Itu in Akwa Ibom State.
He said it was also a significant route for transportation, commerce, and social integration within Cross River State and the broader south-eastern and south-south regions of Nigeria.
He noted that the highway is the primary corridor for facilitating the transportation of agricultural produce, such as cocoa, palm oil, cassava, yams, and bananas, from rural areas to urban markets. It also provides access to tourist attractions such as the Obudu Mountain Resort and the Agbokim Waterfalls.
He said the road also serves as an evacuation corridor for the supply of solid minerals across the South-South and South-East regions from quarries in Cross River State to the Calabar Port, which is strategically important as a bulk cargo port for petroleum products being conveyed to the North Central and North East of Nigeria.
He lamented that the highway has been in disrepair for years, with significant portions uncompleted despite repeated promises and allocations in federal budgets.
He said the delay in completing the highway has caused untold hardship to commuters and residents, disrupted economic activities, and increased transportation costs for agricultural produce and other goods.
He averred that the completion of the Odukpani-Itu Highway is not only a matter of infrastructure development but also a moral and economic obligation to the people of Cross River State and the Niger Delta region at large.
He said he believed that the completion of repairs on the Odukpani-Itu Highway would directly support President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda by “fostering economic growth, improving connectivity, and enhancing social welfare in Cross River State and beyond through job creation, improved market access, and support for MSMEs through improved infrastructure.”
Senators Ekong Sampson, Seriake Dickson, Victor Umeh, and Shaibu Isa Lau, among others, supported the motion and approved its prayers when Senate President Godswill Akpabio put them to a voice vote.
