ABAK, AKWA IBOM
A road construction project aimed at improving connectivity in Abak Local Government Area has been stalled for nearly a year, leaving residents in a worse state than before and facing severe flooding due to poorly executed drainage works.
The project, titled Construction of Ediene Obong Road (Project Code: ERGP20247152), according to Tracka, was allocated a substantial N400 million under the purview of the Federal Co-operative College, Ibadan. The contract was awarded to Fortera Nigeria Ltd. and it is still at the ongoing phase.
Local residents, whose identities are protected by Tracka, revealed that the work commenced between April and May 2024 but came to a complete halt by October 2024. As at the time of filing this report there appear to be no sign suggesting a planned return by the contractor. The only remnants of the multi-million naira effort are “mounds of sand and a stagnant pool of water that breeds mosquitoes,” according to locals who preferred anonymity.
The community’s distress centers on the critical failure of the new infrastructure. The drainage system constructed on both sides of the road was described by a resident as “poorly built” and “not properly designed to channel water.”
“The current condition of the road is worse than it was in the past,” lamented one resident. “We are suffering losses due to the floods caused by the badly constructed drainage, which forces us to evacuate our homes whenever it rains.”
