Akamkpa, Cross River State — The Senate Committee on Local Government has carried out an inspection visit to Akamkpa Local Government Area, with some of its principal officers leading the exercise.
The delegation was warmly received by the Chairman of Akamkpa Local Government Council, Hon. (Ophot) Felix Akposi, KSJI, alongside the Head of Local Government Administration (HOLGA), Dr. Obal, and other principal officers of the council.
In his remarks, Hon. Akposi commended the committee for the remarkable work it is doing across the country but raised a concern about the brevity of their visit.
“You are here for your oversight functions of local government but I have a complaint. Akamkpa is so large for the committee to use less than a day to inspect projects here, as you won’t see first-hand all that we have been doing. This is a great disservice to us. I pray in your subsequent inspection visits, you set aside two days just for Akamkpa,” Akposi said.
The committee was thereafter conducted round key projects in the area, including the ongoing total overhaul of the legislative block, a 15,000 oil palm nursery, and the construction of 36 lock-up stores at the Awi Trailer Park. According to the Chairman, the oil palm seedlings will be distributed to farmers across the ten council wards of Akamkpa.
He further disclosed that the council plans to landscape the trailer park and execute other projects to give Awi town a facelift, noting that the community hosts the first university of education and entrepreneurship in Nigeria.
Other projects visited included five nearly completed motorised boreholes across Old Netim, Uyanga, Ojor, and Iwuru communities. The Chairman also briefed the committee on earthworks for rural roads, medical outreach programmes, and the ongoing bursary payments to Akamkpa students.
Leader of the Senate team, Dr. Muyiwa Babatimehin, praised the council for its people-oriented projects and expressed satisfaction with the administration’s efforts.
“Let me first of all thank the Governor of Cross River State for deeming it fit to have functional local government in place, as this is not the case in some of the states we have visited. These local governments in Cross River State, from all we have seen, are very functional and this is commendable,” he stated.
Babatimehin acknowledged Akposi’s concerns about the vastness of the council area and pledged that the committee would rely on video evidence, pictures, and collaboration with the Ministry of Local Government to cover more ground of the inspections.
“The little we have seen is commendable and on point. They all reflect the people and show that this is a government that carries out proper needs assessment before embarking on projects. We also appreciate the effort to ensure balance across political wards to forestall marginalisation,” he added.
The visit ended with a vote of thanks to the Chairman, principal staff, and workers of the council, followed by a photo session that climaxed the tour.
