Finish It Or Forget It: Fubara Fumes, Dares Contractor To Miss One-Month Deadline

Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, has given Raffoul Nigeria Limited, the contractor handling the 6.5-kilometre Woji–Aleto–Alesa–Refinery Road, a one-month ultimatum to complete the project or risk having the contract terminated.

Fubara issued the warning on Friday during an unscheduled inspection of the project site. He was accompanied by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Special Projects, Hebron Wisdom.

Visibly displeased with the pace of work, the governor said the company had received multiple variations and support from the state government to ensure the completion of the road and its 200-metre bridge but had failed to deliver.

“This project was awarded about June 2020 by my predecessor. I even went as far as giving them two variations to enable them achieve a good proportion of this job. But to my greatest surprise, there is no progress to show for it,” Fubara said.

The governor recalled that the project had been evaluated and cancelled under the previous emergency administration but said he decided to give Raffoul another opportunity to complete it.

“If they can’t complete this job in the next one month, I will stick to that position of the administrator as at when the emergency rule was on in the state,” he warned.

Fubara also condemned ongoing dredging activities near the bridge, describing the operation as unsafe and unacceptable.

“How could a normal human being be dredging very close to a bridge? Is it proper? If I come here any other time or get any information that dredging activity is being conducted around this area, I will personally supervise and destroy the dredger myself,” he said.

The governor reiterated his administration’s commitment to delivering quality infrastructure across Rivers State, stressing that contractors who fail to meet agreed standards or timelines would not be indulged.