Why we are doing concrete roads- Bayelsa Govt

From Femi Folaranmi, Yenagoa

The Bayelsa State government has offered reasons why it is embarking on construction of concrete roads across the Yenagoa metropolis.

In a veiled response to criticisms that the state government is not performing, the Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure, Moses Teibowei in an interview after inspection of some road projects defended concrete roads noting that they have been proven to be durable.

Teibowei who disclosed that the 20 roads for the first phase of roads in Yenagoa would cost N2.3 billion added that by the second year anniversary the state government would embark on more roads depending on the financial resources available to the state government.

“This is to bring to limelight and to inform the good people of Bayelsa State of the projects being embarked upon by Governor Douye Diri, specifically internal roads in the Yenagoa metropolis. There are also roads that are being embarked upon in the rural areas within the local government headquarters and the communities. There are 20 roads in all. 10 have been completed, six are on-going and four would be completed very soon for the second anniversary.

“If you go to Apapa now, what Dangote is building is a concrete road. It can stand the test of time. What we are doing, is that we are carrying out proper supervision on these roads. So we strongly believe it would stand the test of time. After all, asphalt roads also fail.  In the future, we may go a step further to asphalt these concrete roads that have been constructed. For now we need to manage the resources that are available at the disposal of the government.”

On whether political influence was behind the picking of roads to be constructed considering other roads across the state that demand attention, Teibowei said the roads were picked randomly without any political consideration.

Also speaking, the Commissioner for Information, Orientation and Strategy, Ayiba Crowther Duba noted that the government won’t shy away from criticisms stressing that it would continue to work and do the proper things for the good of Bayelsans.

“The sixteen roads so far out of 20, we can confidently tell the world they are handled by indigenous contractors. If you want to raise businessmen and to make them compete with others and make ends meet it is your own people you use and that is what the prosperity government is doing. By awarding these jobs to indigenes, prosperity is expanding its frontiers.

“We have a responsible leader in the person of Governor Douye Diri who would never, as he keeps saying, play with the development of the Bayelsa State. We all belong here, we don’t have any other state we call our own, if we don’t develop it, who would develop it for us? Bayelsans should keep faith with us.

The post Why we are doing concrete roads- Bayelsa Govt appeared first on The Sun Nigeria.