President Bola Tinubu commissioned a 600-metre bridge project linking 20 communities in Ibeno Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State.
The Iko-Atabrikang-Akata-Opolom- Okoroutip -Iwouchang road (section 11) was constructed by the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).
Speaking while commission the project, President Tinubu, who was represented by Godswill Akpabio, the president of the Senate, lauded the management of the NDDC for touching the lives of the people of the Niger Delta.
“Congratulations to you, the MD, together with the chairman of the NDDC board, along with other executive and board members for being the first board in the NDDC since the year 2000 to remain focused, united and inaugurating projects that directly benefit the people of the Niger Delta.
“This is coming after you were able to connect five local government areas in Ondo State to the national grid by the inauguration of the substation at Okitipupa, the substation is going to serve 64 communities and I can tell you that you have brought light to the people.
“Today, the people of Ibeno have another access road to civilisation, it was difficult before to access these areas, but today, you can access 600 metres of the bridge. About 20 communities separated by the Qua-Iboe River are now linked up by this bridge to Eastern Obolo and other parts of the state.
“The economic activities, exchange of commerce and education will now flourish. This is the first time NDDC is impacting the lives of the Niger Delta people directly,” the president said.
The president asked the NDDC to beam its searchlight on the people of the region to empower them, while stating that many years of oil exploration activities had impacted negatively on the Niger Delta people, in terms of acid rain and poor yield, among other devastating effect.
Also, Abubakar Momoh, the Minister of the Nigerian Delta Development, said the milestone being recorded with the inauguration of the bridge was a product of a performance bond signed between the management of the NDDC and his ministry.
While noting that the 20 communities the bridge would serve were disjointed, Momoh said with the inauguration, the communities would access each other, adding that economic activities would begin to flourish.
“When we assumed office last year, myself and the permanent secretary signed a performance bond with Mr President and sometime last year, the NDDC signed a performance bond with the ministry. So what you are seeing today is the direct fallout of that commitment,” the minister said.
Umo Eno, the Akwa Ibom State Governor, who was spoke for by Senator Akon Ayakenyi, the Deputy Governor, said the NDDC management for its commitment to uplifting the lives of the people in Nigeria.
