The people of Ozuitem in Bende council area of Abia State have decried what they called poor quality work being done by the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) on the Uzuakoli-Ozuitem Road.
DAILY POST gathered that the project is being handled by Slok Holdings Ltd.
Speaking on the matter, a community leader, Ikechi Njoku said although the people were delighted when construction work commenced on the road, they were now disappointed with the quality of work being done.
Njoku said that his people expected that the road, which had suffered years of neglect, would receive quality attention.
He said, “Before now I have been trying to find means of working on this road as our people have suffered enough.
“So, my joy knew no bounds when the NNDC awarded contract for the road; however, as it stands now, we are not happy with the quality; it is not the type of job both the presidency and the NDDC should do”, he alleged.
“My people who are owners of the road need to know the terms of the contract, the length of the road, the amount quoted and how long it will take the contractor to finish the work; in fact there are many questions that we need answers for.
“We are happy that the reconstruction of this all important road has commenced but at the same time, we are worried with the quality of work being executed by the contractor; we need a better quality work to be done if this road is to last for a long time”, he added.
On whether they were not comfortable with the contractor, an indigene of a neighbouring community, he said, “I have no problems with the contractor handling the road because he is from the next community.
“I am a believer of local content and empowering the people but the company needs to improve on the quality of the work they are doing on this road”.
Njoku further stated that the road, which is being accessed by several communities in the Bende, Ohafia and Arochukwu local government areas “is expected to witness heavy traffic during the Christmas period; so, there is need for quality work to be done”.
Similarly, another community leader, who toed the same line lamented that the road project, which is ongoing is already failing, while erosion has started ravaging some portion.
He stressed that “the contractor, Slok Holdings need to look at the work they are doing.”
Adighibe claimed that when the work commenced, “there was no sign post to show the people the name of the contractor handling the project.
“When we started asking questions, we suddenly saw Slok sign post; this is how we came to know the name of the contractor handling the project”.
He called on the NDDC to monitor the quality of work being executed by the contractor at any level of the work to ensure that it was done according to specification.
Reacting also, Mr. Samuel Oti from Isiegbu Ozuitem said that the portion so far done was not of good quality.
He asked the NDDC to quickly rise to the occasion to redeem its image in the eyes of the people.
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