Minister of Works David Umahi has ordered the immediate suspension of the ongoing rehabilitation by Reynolds Construction Company (RCC) at the Eleme portion of the East-West Road in Rivers State.
The Minister disclosed that although the contractor RCC already received N33 billion of the total contract value, the contractor was resorting to sharp tactics.
It would be recalled that three months have passed since the Federal Government mobilized Reynolds Construction Company (RCC), the contractors, to start construction on the road.
However, during the Minister’s project inspection of the East-West Road in Port Harcourt on Saturday, January 27, Umahi ordered the project’s suspension pending when some irregularities were corrected.
He was accompanied by Barry Mpigi, the Senator representing Rivers South-East, who witnessed the action.
There are 300 oil and gas firms in the Eleme segment of the East-West, which stretches roughly 15 kilometres from Port Harcourt/Eleme Junction to Onne.
Among these is the Port Harcourt Refinery.
It had been a notorious accident spot, with numerous deaths resulting.
Umahi had last September disclosed that the Federal Government committed N33 billion to the contractor to commence work on the Eleme-Onne section of the East-West Road in Rivers State.
He explained that the project became a necessary mandate after Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara and the Minister of FCT, Nyesom Wike, visited the President and tabled the matter.
