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FILE: One of the bad portions of the Calabar-Uyo highway
The government of Cross River State has appealed to the Federal Government to expedite action on the reconstruction work on the Calabar-Uyo federal highway.
The Commissioner for Commerce, Abigail Duke Orok, made the appeal on Monday when she visited the Federal Controller of Works at his office in Calabar.
The condition of the federal highway that links Calabar to neighbouring Akwa Ibom and nearby eastern states has remained deplorable for more than 10 years.
She noted that a journey that used to take one hour from Calabar, the capital of Cross River State, to Uyo, the capital of Akwa Ibom State, now takes a minimum of five hours.
The commissioner noted that the poor state of roads leading to the state’s capital has raised concerns among business operators and is negatively impacting the movement of goods and services in and out of the state, resulting in astronomical increases in transportation costs.
The state government wants the Federal Government to address critical road infrastructure issues to encourage increased participation during this year’s International Trade Fair, scheduled for November, and Carnival Calabar in December.
She said, “We appeal for palliative work to be carried out on key access roads to encourage maximum participation from our neighbouring states and countries during the upcoming Trade Fair and Carnival.
“As we are aware, most access roads to Calabar are in very deplorable state and practically impassable, particularly the Calabar-Uyo, Ikom-Obudu, Bekwarra-Vandekya axis of Ogoja, and the Akamkpa/Biase section of the Calabar-Ikom axis, to mention but a few.”
Responding to the appeal, the State Controller of Works, Federal Ministry of Works, Engr. Adebisi Osim, acknowledged the concerns raised and promised to relay the message to the appropriate authorities.
She added that her office has been in touch with contractors working on those routes to ensure the speedy completion of the various projects.
