By Magnus Effiong/Ita Williams
Governor Bassey Otu of Cross River State has received commendation from the opposition political parties and indeed all Cross Riverians for the physical proofs of performance the State is experiencing within his few months in office.
The Governor, who seems to have declared emergency on road infrastructure in the State capital and indeed all major towns in the State, may have restored the glory of the ancient city of Calabar. Major stakeholders in the opposition have lend credence to this.
In his Facebook page, a Chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Mr Dominc Kidzu said Otu was doing the simplest things that impact the people and improve their living conditions and that the capital city which he described as a once ‘dinghy, decrepit and decaying capital city’ under the last dispensation, was now “on the path of recovery” and that a “paradise once lost, on the road to being regained.”
The former General Manager of the State-owned newspaper corporation, publisher of The Nigerian Chronicle, believed that “the spectre of fragmentary self-ennobling, self-gratifying leadership is over as we begin to witness the first few, but steady footsteps to the future of our state.”
To the candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) for the Bakassi State Constituency, Comrade Emanuel Asuquo, Gov Otu is performing because he had prepared his mind to take the State from “dungeon of hopelessness and socio-economic despair and infrastructural uncertainty”
He said “Even though we are in the opposition, the truth is that we all work for Senator Otu because we saw that he has what it takes to change the chequered narratives of our State. His victory was across party lines, it was not solely the APC matter.
“Within these few months, we can see that the environment has taken shape as compared to the previous administration. Even evacuation of refuse has become more regular, you could look the orderliness, everywhere is calm.
“He is doing well but as humans, we still expect more from him. We give him a pass mark but he should expand government and bring in members of the opposition who worked for his victory,” he stated.
Lending his voice to the goodwill which the government is currently receiving, Sen Sandy Onor of the PDP, Gov Otu’s bitter opponent in last year’s governorship election, in a congratulatory message to the Governor, urged Cross Riverians to give the Odukpani-born Senator “all the support, advice and prayers.”
He believed that Otu can “make Cross River State the dream homeland that we would all cherish.” To many, Senator Onor’s belief is becoming a reality.
Our reporter also observed that apart from the anger Gov Otu is spewing against potholes-filled roads he inherited, other infrastructures are also being frontally tackled.
The abandoned Calabar International Conference Centre (CICC) which was destroyed since 2020 by the EndSars protesters and abandoned for three solid years, has received attention and brought back on stream better than it was before. Major events are now taking place there as we speak.
The shameful negligence of Calabar’s street and traffic lights has changed. The installation of traffic lights across major junctions in the metropolis has brought sanity to the traffic situation in the ancient city. Besides, the Murtala Muhammed Highway has become a beauty to behold. Motorists are heaping praises on the Governor as they enjoy the smooth intra-city pathways.
Penultimate week, the Commissioner of Information, Mr. Erasmus Ekpang, had led Journalists on project inspection tour within the Calabar Metropolis.
Among the projects visited were the nearly 60 percent completed culvert at Chamley Street, the Clerks Allay road construction, Nyong Edem and Eyo Okon concrete solid road construction, the Yellow Duke gully construction, the Zoo-Garden fruits Market building, the Parliamentary Extension road renovation project, the Esuk-Utan road dualization project, and the Mauri Ntah Eke street construction amongst others.
During the inspections, engineers at many of the project sites confirmed that some of the projects were nearly 90 percent completed.
The Commissioner expressed the Governor’s commitment to restoring Calabar to its former glory, and noted “We are truly in a season of progress. We have inspected 8 physical projects, and many roads have been successfully fixed through Direct Labour. The Governor has pledged to do even more.”
Residents also expressed their gratitude to Governor Otu for his dedication to improving their living conditions.
Speaking, Elder Saviour Etim, a resident of Clerks Allay Street, where new road construction is underway, expressed his happiness, saying, “I am very pleased with the Governor for considering us here at Clerks Allay.
“We are all thrilled. I have been living here for over 30 years, and people have been deviating and urinating in this area, using the street as a toilet. So, I want to thank the Governor for coming to our aid. He deserves commendation for this remarkable achievement.”
Engineer Nta Edet of FaithPlant Construction Ltd provided an update on the Esuk Utan road project, saying his company had already completed 70 percent of the work and were working tirelessly to finish it on time.
Comrade Clement Effiong Etim, a youth leader from Esuk Utan, expressed his gratitude to Governor Otu, stating, “I want to thank Governor Bassey Otu for ensuring the construction of this road. It will greatly improve our people’s mobility. We appreciate your good work, our Sweet Prince.”
Former Youth Leader in Ekorinim 1, Mr. Okon Iyasa also commended the Governor for his massive road rehabilitation and construction, and noted with the speed the Governor was going, in no distant time, visitors to the new Cross River would find it difficult to explain the magic wand the man on the saddle was employing.