A major road project in Imo State that has gulped about N12.7 billion in the past 11 years is yet to serve its purpose amidst allegations of fraud and use of substandard materials.
The project has passed through four different administrations in the state, with each showing interest in completing it due to the road’s importance to residents of the oil-producing state.
The project, officially called ‘Dualization of Inner Ring Road,’ is a double lane road from Egbeada end of Onitsha road through Amakohia, cutting across Orji-Okigwe road, to Bishop’s court through Chukwuma Nwaoha street out to Egbu road.
The 6.1-kilometre road includes two interchange flyovers at Amakohia and Orji, and a bridge across Nworie river.
The flyovers, located at Amakohia and Orji, are very strategic to motorists as they provide easy routes to Orlu and some parts of Anambra State and also to Okigwe en-route Abia and Enugu states.
The First Contract
The road project was first awarded in 2010 by the Ikedi Ohakim administration. The contract for the construction was awarded to Raycon Construction Company for N5.6 billion.
The exact amount paid to Raycon out of the contract sum could not be ascertained as officials involved declined to speak on the matter. Officials of the works ministry who spoke off the record claimed that documents relating to the contract were destroyed when the works ministry moved its office to a new one.
Raycon was to complete the contract within four years. However, one year after the contract was awarded, a new administration, led by Rochas Okorocha, came into power.
Mr Okorocha’s administration terminated the contract in 2011. Findings by this reporter, however, show that before the contract was terminated, Raycon had executed a large part of the project. It completed the sub-structure of the flyovers, commenced the superstructure, did a part of the retaining walls but could not complete the remaining part of the superstructure and the beams.
