Rivers State Governor, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi
The Rivers State Governor, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi, on Thursday vowed to prosecute errant contractors handling projects in the state. Already, the governor has summoned two contractors to appear before him on Monday to explain why they failed to execute their contracts according to specifications. Amaechi, who visited some project sites within Port Harcourt city, with members of his cabinet, expressed his displeasure at the quality of work done by some contractors.

The Niger Delta Citizens and Budget Platform had on Tuesday faulted the state’s implementation of the 2009 budget, which it said lacked transparency. The group, through its Coordinator, Mr. Ken Henshaw, also accused the government of paying out huge sums of money for projects that were never executed.

But the governor said that all the contracts awarded under the budget passed through due process checks, saying that any contractor that failed to deliver will be prosecuted. Before the contract for the construction of Omagwa Mega Hospital was awarded, he said due diligence was carried out to ensure that the contractor could handle the job.

He, however, lamented that the level of work carried out at the project site was not commensurable with the amount paid by the government. Already, he said $30m had been paid to the contractor but said unless enough work was done to justify further payment, the government would not release additional funds for the job.

He said, “There were some projects we had to take a second look at and I decided not to do so alone but with members of cabinet. The first project was the construction of Football Field 6 at the Old Port Harcourt Township . “The project should have been completed long ago and in good quality. For the cabinet and me, the quality of work done did not meet our expectation. “The cabinet will hold the commissioner for sports accountable for the job. He must ensure that the contractor completes that job based on specification.

On the slow pace of work at the mega hospital project, he said, “We want to ensure that nobody takes government money away without accounting for it. “The mega hospital project has to be completed before the end of our tenure. The contract is one year and six-months.
“He has done one year and you can see that the work is still at the foundation level. The excuse he gave is that the rains disturbed work but what has happened between September last year and now? “We will do everything to ensure that no contractor takes public funds away without executing the project he was paid to do.”

On the delay in the allocation of stalls at the New Mile One Market, the governor said the committee set up by the government was working with the Port Harcourt City Council to allocate them. He said progress has been made in road construction and added that some of the projects have already been handed over to the government.

By Ibanga Isine, Port Harcourt,

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