I have not awarded any contract since I became Minister of Nigeria Delta Affairs, Godswill Akpabio has said.
Akpabio stated this on Wednesday when he received the Secretary of the Interim Caretaker Committee of the All Progressive Congress (APC), Senator Akpan Udohedehen in Abuja.
According to the minister “We have not given out one single contract since we came on board but we have meticulously worked on old contracts which we believe will be useful to the people.
” As we speak, seventy-three roads have been completed, some dated back to 2003, 2005, 2006″.
“The contractors simply went back to site, all because Mr. President instituted the forensic auditing exercise of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) to reinforce accountability in governance.
He revealed that:“As at today, the Ministry has submitted the second Interim report of the forensic audit to the presidency in this regard”.
“The Permanent Secretary of the Ministry has also furnished me with the report of 39 projects that are ready for commission, some of them with Skills Acquisition Centers in Akwa-Ibom, Imo and Ondo States.
“In addition, we have identified a 132KVA Power Station which was abandoned in the last 14 years. This will be revived within the next four months to generate and supply light to 14 communities in Ondo.
Akpabio said the Ministry would soon invite the leadership of the APC and stakeholders to the commissioning of the ‘Special Operations Unit of the Nigerian Police Force (NPF) Headquarters in Port Harcourt.
This according to the former governor of Akwa Ibom state is” part of measures to support the security infrastructure, sustain peace and socio-economic development within the region.
“We recognise the fact that without the presence of the party, the Ministers, Governor’s and other political office stakeholders would not be where they are today.
“So all of us are subject to the party and we must do everything to support the party. Therefore, everything we do in the Ministry, we try to involve the party at the National and State level,” he said.
Senator Udohedehen explained that the purpose of his visit is to appreciate and reciprocate the visit of the Minister to the party Secretariat.
He Added that the Interim National Chairman was fully briefed on Akpabio’s visit and he expressed gratitude for the minister’s initiatives.
