The Federal government has approved about #2 billion for the provision of palliative measures along Calabar/Itu Federal highway under the Niger Delta Development Commission(NDDC). This amount is for the fixing of some bad portions on the Calabar-Itu Federal Highway.
This was disclosed by Mrs Ibim Semenitari, acting managing director, NDDC, while on inspection of some portions in Ikot Nyong, Odukpani Local Government area of Cross River.
She told members of the Senate Committee led by Senator Peter Nwaoboshi, that the NDDC decided to intervene as a result of the serious challenges members of the public were experiencing on this particular federal highway.
According to her, the estimate will cover about 75 kilometres of the road from asphalt to complete intervention. She said the commission had also provided various projects and similar intervention in nine Niger Delta states within its mandate.
She said that the commission engaged about four contractors to fix some dilapidated portions on the road required major intervention to make it motorable.
Semenitari who also took the committee to the 15-kilometre Adiabo-Okurikang Road, said that construction work on the road was abandoned by the contractor after collecting about N1.56 billion
She said the contract sum for the road, which is a shortcut to Calabar, was N4-3 billion, adding that the contractor covered only 4.1kilometre of the road before abandoning it. She said it was the wish of the NDDC that the road should be re-awarded to a “competent contractor’’.
In his response, Senator. Nwaoboshi commended the NDDC for its intervention on Calabar–Itu road so as to reduce the burden of commuters on the road. He said, “you have done a very nice job, we commend you, but you have to do more adding we are not pleased with the level of work on Adiabo-Okurikang road” .
Nwaoboshi had earlier had paid a courtesy visit on governor Ben Ayade of Cross River and told him that they were in the state
for an oversight function and inspection of projects. He said that the Senate had directed the committee to visit the NDDC, the Presidential amnesty Programme and the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs and report its findings. 
He said the state government had a duty to monitor NDDC’s projects within its domain to ensure that they were properly
executed.
He restated that the senate had budgeted about N241 billion for the NDDC this year, adding that the committee was also sensitising Nigerians that it would conduct a public hearing on the amnesty programme and called on the state government to submit its memoranda to the committee which sitting had been slated for Oct. 6 and Oct. 7,2016 in Abuja.
Earlier, Ayade, who was represented by his deputy Prof. Ivara Esu, thanked the committee members for the visit. He also commended the National Assembly members for working together irrespective of party affiliations especially on matters of national interest. He also urged the committee to consider the inclusion of members of the Bakassi Strike Force, a militant group in the state, in the presidential amnesty programme.
