Beyond the Myths

Umana Okon Umana, Secretary to the Akwa Ibom State Government

Against the backdrop of the avalanche of critcism trailing what its opponents refer to as white Elephant projects, the Akwa Ibom State government explains its motive
By Gideon Njoku, Uyo
Secretary to the Akwa Ibom State Government, Umana Okon Umana, has shed more lights on the Ibom Tropicana and Itam flyover projects. Speaking to some journalists in his office, the SSG said that too much emotion has been employed by various commentators, without getting the true picture of the real essence of the projects.
Umana, who is also the chairman of FGPC (Finance and General Purpose Committee), also explained that a more objective assessment of the projects based on available technical facts would be more beneficial to all stakeholders than emotional comments not backed by what currently obtains. The SSG said that the Tropicana project sits on 82 hectares of land spanning from Udo Udoma Avenue to the third Ring Road, making the available land more than enough for the project.
He stated that it would be misleading to think that any responsible government would embark on a project of that magnitude without proper and professional and feasibility study of the project, adding that every aspect of study, design and other pre-construction jobs were done on the project. The SSG revealed that an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) study on the project was carried out by a consulting firm, PGM limited. The EIA, he said took care of all the concerns being raised in some quarters on space, parking area, and traffic, adding that the project site could be accessed from both Udo Udoma Avenue and the third Ring Road, thereby taking care of any traffic bottleneck on either of the roads.
Umana further, stated that it was unfortunate that those who rushed to condemn the location of the project clearly did so out of ignorance and that the controversy would have been avoided only if critics had taken time to consult the relevant agencies of government, like the Ministry of Lands and Survey, Office of the Surveyor General and the consultant, AIM Consultants who would have readily made available copies of the site plan. He also said it was a shame that the controversy ever emerged because all the necessary information could have been obtained from the publication on acquisition of land in the Pioneer newspaper of January 14, 2009 by the state's Ministry of Land and Town Planning.
On the flyover project, Umana was emphatic that the project was not arbitrarily initiated. He said that the government being mindful of the envisaged growth of the city, commissioned Julius Berger to produce an updated transportation and road network master plan for Uyo. A fall- out of the Julius Berger study, according to him, was the recommendation for a flyover at Itam junction. The need for the flyover, he said, was justified by Julius Berger’s’ finding that 2,300 trucks ply that area of Uyo city on daily basis. The present flow and the envisaged quadrupling of traffic into and out of Uyo in a few years, the SSG revealed, informed the government’s decision to take a proactive step to stem the likely traffic nightmare at the city entrance in future by constructing the flyover.
Umana called for more objective appraisal of government projects and programmes, arguing that the present government in the state was alive to its desire to place the interest of Akwa Ibom State and her people above any other consideration. He enjoined the people of the state to keep faith with government as the administration of Governor Godswill Akpabio, he said, was committed to the rapid transformation of the State, as could be seen by the magnitude of on-going projects, which cuts across every corner of the state.