19 February 2020
George Odok Jnr NAN correspondent in Cross River who was recently on the Minister's entourage during the inspection of sections of federal roads in Cross River and Akwa Ibom states have given insight into what Minister Babatunde Fashola said about N20 billion Calabar-Pamol-Odukpani highway and the ongoing construction efforts by the state government.
According to Odok, the Federal Government has ruled out refunding the N20 billion the Governor Ben Ayade administration is spending on the Tinapa-Odukpani junction dual carriage and the Odukpani junction spaghetti flyover in Cross River State.
The Minister said. "The President has said that he won't pay any refund, leave my road alone. But if the state is happy to expand the road subject to approval then it is fine because that road is now a municipal road.
"I think it is important to understand that the road runs into the heart of Calabar town and our responsibility really is to connect states, not to build municipality roads.
"But, at the time those roads were built in the 60s or 70s, all of that place was a forest. So, if it becomes an urban centre and the state government is now erecting street lamp poles and collecting advertising right, let them use the money to build the road, that relieves us really.
"We are struggling to raise money to build roads that connects states, drive the economy, move granite, fuel and agricultural produce, not to build municipal road inside the centre of town, that's the responsibility of the state government".
His Excellency the Executive Governor of Cross River Sen. Prof. Benedict Ayade has in the past two years struggled to fix the 16.7 kilometre dual carriage way and the flyover estimated at N20 billion with the hope that the Federal Government would make refund when completed.
Source: George's Print
