WARRI—AN indigenous construction firm, A & J Construction Company Limited, has denied an allegation by Itsekiri Leaders of Thought, ILOT, that it collected a huge sum of money from Delta State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission, DESOPADEC, for the sand-filling, drainage/landscaping within the hostel and dining hall section of Ogidigben Grammar School, Ogidigben, in Warri South-West Local Government Area, Delta State, without executing a commensurate work.
Project/Site Manager of A & J Construction, Mr. Tuoyo Igbiaye, in a statement after conducting newsmen and members of Concerned Itsekiri Social Media Activists, CISMA, led by its Coordinator, Prince Jerry Onesan, round the project site, said: “There is an obvious error in the assertion that the reclamation of swamps by way of sand-filling /drainage/landscaping in the hostel and dining hall section of Ogidigben Grammar School awarded to our firm was not done and money paid. It is not true. We think the people that forwarded that report misrepresented the fact of the matter.”
Noting that his firm still reveres ILOT, Mr. Igbiaye added: “The fact of the matter is that the swamp reclamation work (sand-filling), which is the major aspect of the job, is about 85 per cent complete. All materials for landscaping, namely interlocks and kerbs, have long been produced at site. But for the recent Ugborodo crisis which made us to demobilise from site, it would have been a done deal so long as DESOPADEC released funds.”
He listed landmark projects successfully executed by A & J Construction for Delta State Government in Itsekiri communities to include Delta State Housing Estate in Ogidigben, which was built in three months, swamp reclamation, fencing/landscaping of the estate at Ogidigben, construction of Ugborodo Skill Acquisition Centre, done within four months, construction of two hostels and dining hall in Ogidigben Grammar School and the extension of 33KVA lines from Sapele to Abigborodo and Arun Owurun with two sub- stations.
He explained that contrary to reports that money was collected for LED TV contract in Obodo and Deghele communities for jobs not done, contracts for the aforesaid jobs were still being processed and the contractor has not mobilised to site. He wondered how payments could have been made for such contracts as claimed.
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