ANAMBRA DEFENDS ROAD PROJECTS, BLAMES FLOODING FOR SOME FAILURES
By: Safiya Abdulrahim Dabban
The Anambra State Government has dismissed allegations of engaging substandard contractors for road projects, insisting that all firms handling its projects are qualified and professionally rated.
The Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure, Okey Ezeobi, stated this during a press briefing in Awka, following public criticism over the failure and reconstruction of some recently completed roads.
Ezeobi attributed the damage largely to heavy rainfall and flash floods, particularly in flood-prone areas, but acknowledged that contractors could not be completely absolved of responsibility.
He disclosed that the state had asphalted 742 kilometres of roads and awarded 143 road contracts under Governor Chukwuma Soludo, with a reported failure rate of about three per cent.
The commissioner urged residents to stop dumping refuse in drainage channels and cautioned heavy-duty vehicle operators against damaging asphalted roads.
He also disclosed that the Federal Government had approved a pedestrian flyover at Regina Caeli Junction and a pedestrian crossing in front of Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka.
On the Ekwulobia Flyover, Ezeobi said the project had no structural defects and was expected to open to motorists in the first week of December 2026.
He added that reconstruction of the Amawbia section of the highway would commence soon, while clarifying that some roads currently undergoing repairs had not been handed over to the state government.