House Ad-Hoc C'ttee Decries Quality of NDDC Road Projects in Edo ...NDDC must compensate flood victims, says Obaseki

The House of Representatives Ad-Hoc Committee on Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) Abandoned Projects in Edo State, Hon. Sergius Ogun, on Tuesday expressed disappointment with the number of the Commission abandoned projects in the state, noting that some projects awarded since 2012 cannot be accounted for anywhere in the state.

Ogun, who stated this when the House Ad-Hoc committee conducted an on-the-spot assessment of the abandoned projects in the state in the company of the state Governor, Godwin Obaseki, said: "It is obvious that NDDC has not partnered the state government. We are talking about projects awarded by NDDC in 2012. Seven years after, we cannot see any visible projects by the Commission. These are some of the things we will take back to Abuja."

Also speaking, Obaseki, demanded compensation for residents in the affected area located off Sakponba Road, who were ravaged by flooding caused by shoddy road project executed by NDDC contractors in the area.

After inspecting the impact of the flooding, Obaseki said NDDC and the contractor responsible for the project would have to compensate the victims whose properties were damaged by the flooding.

He said: "The contractor did the asphalt work on the road without taking into consideration the fact that there were manholes to channel water in the area. When the community advised the contractor not to block the manholes, he disregarded the complaints and blocked them. You can see the devastation that has caused.

"We are holding the NDDC and the contractor liable, and we will take legal actions to ensure they compensate the victims affected."

When the entourage inspected the ongoing Benin-Abraka Road project, Obaseki again berated the NDDC for not fulfilling its part of the tripartite agreement it entered with the state government and Edo State Oil and Gas Development Commission (EDSOPADEC) on the repair of the road.

He explained that the NDDC was supposed to contribute 40 per cent, while the state government and its agency would contribute the remaining 60 per cent to the project, but the Commission reneged on the agreement.

Obaseki added that the state government had commenced work on the road, which he assured the state would be completed with or without NDDC counterpart fund, noting that NDDC is grossly mismanaged.

The governor said the commission claimed it spent N20 billion on emergency projects in the state without paying its counterpart fund for the Benin-Abraka road.

The state Director of the NDDC, Mr. Gbubemi Ogor, said sanctions would be meted out to erring contractors, and ensured close collaboration with the state government, adding that "just as the governor has said, there is a need for us to sit up."