E.K Clark Fingered In Bayelsa Multi Billion Naira Abandoned Contract

Communities in former president Jonathan’s Ward 13 of Ogbia local Government area of Bayelsa State have alleged that foremost Ijaw leader and statesman,Chief Edwin Clark is the one  behind the abandonment of the Otuoke-Ewoi-Otuabula-Abobiri-Ogbia town no fewer than 15km road project.

Relaying their plight to Journalists saturday at the site of an  abandoned bridge section of the road in Otuabula 2, headquarters of the former president’s ward,Chairman community Development committee, Otuabula 2, chief Koto Omiloli said the need to draw the attention of the world and Government to the issue was necessitated by the Economic and social implications of the abandonment.

He alleged that lack of  political will by successive administrations of the state to wade into the cause of the delay in delivering the project over 12 years since it was awarded may not be unconnected to the affinities of the contractors to power brokers as at when the contract was awarded during former Governor Sylva’s administration in the state.

Chief Omiloli alleged that records made available to beneficiary  communities of the project by the state Ministry of Works show that the infrastructure if completed is expected not just to link the far-flunged communities of Ogbia,but would have also made en routes into Nembe Local Government area.

“This road standing abandoned here was awarded over 12years ago.It was approved by the Alamieyeseigha and Jonathan’s Government. But it was former president Jonathan who later awarded it when he served as Governor of the state. When Sylva came in as Governor,the contractor,one Merss ANCOG applied for variations which the Sylva’s administration graciously approved,” He said.

“Records from the state Ministry of Works and infrastructure shows that Chief Edwin Kiagbodo Clark was the contractor who later subcontracted the road to one Messrs ACONG Nig Ltd.” He added.

The CDC boss revealed that the sum total of the contract may runs into billions, restating that but for the diversion of funds so far released for the project by the contractors for personal use the project which was deliberately  conceived by the Government as part of its effort in opening an alternative route to the rural communities of the state’s Eastern Senatorial distict would have since been completed and put to use.

” You see this road was conceived as an alternative route to the communities of the Eastern senatorial zone but rather than execute the project,from reliable sources we hear that whenever monies are released for the job chief E.K Clark in connivance with the company he brought would divide the monies amongst themselves. But worst of all,the Government has not done enough to call them to order,”He concluded.

In the same vein, One of the impacted communities, Ewoi town has through its CDC chairman,Mr Perfect Ibibo also pleaded with the Government to prevail on the contractors to come back to site.

Ibibo whose community borders Otuabula (ii) said that during the  construction times of the contractor their working equipments and other gadgets were kept in the company’s construction site then situated at Ewoi,saying it was surprising that the contractors pulled out of site without recourse to even  informing their landlord communities.

He berated Clark and his cohorts for letting down the confidence reposed on them by the people,insisting that the Government do everything within its powers to bring back the contractors to recommence the project so as to ameliorate the developmental problems facing the people there.

Efforts to reach the Elder statesman and former Federal commissioner for Information, Chief E.K Clark yielded no results before filing in this report.

However, the state’s Permanent Secretary Ministry of Works,Dr Johnson Dangana who spoke with our correspond in Yenagoa says having just been redeployed to the Ministry in late 2017, as a relatively new administrative head in the ministry where presently no commissioner has been appointed to oversee that he does not have vivid information regarding contracts awarded wayback in 2007-2008 when Sylva was Governor,promising that records would be sorted out to substantiate the claims surrounding the abandonment.