Umuahia: Gov. Otti’s approach to building a smart city
By Ogbonnaya Ikokwu
The upgrade of Umuahia, the capital of Abia State, from a mere glorified urban town, to a befitting capital city, has been a task the Gov. Alex Otti-led administration is handling with an undivided attention.
Barely few months into his admistration, Gov. Otti introduced the zero porthole policy and the lightup Abia initiative as two major projects targeted at improving the status of the capital city as well as the two other major cities in the state, including Aba and Ohafia.
The state chief executive also embarked on the reconstruction and expansion of the old Mission Hill/Ossa Road from Okpara Square to the Abia Tower on the Enugu Port Harcourt Expressway.
The ambitious project was executed by the government, beginning with the payment of huge compensation to landowners, whose property were affected by the expansion, running into N750 million.
The expansion work on the road, now known as Aguiyi Ironsi
Boulevard, was carried out and completed within the first one year of the administration.
The project broke the jinx associated with the expansion of the road by past administrations intended to check the traffic jam often experienced by the road users, particularly during festive seasons.
The six-lane road with improved drainage system has equally improved the ambience of the entry point of the capital city, leaving it with a touch of a smart city.
Not done yet, Gov. Otti also commissioned the construction of an ultramodern Umuahia mega bus terminal at the city centre, popularly known as Isigate.
The project is currently ongoing, together with the expansion of roads around the terminal for easy vehicular movement.
It is expected to help properly organise the capital city and bring to an end the proliferation of parks in the town.
It is also expected that a lot of businesses will move in there because of the provision for hotels, shopping plazas, children playgrounds, among other facilities.
Similarly, the expansion of the road from the Express Tower to Onuimo boundary between Abia and Imo States has also been awarded after compensation had been paid to landowners affected by the expansion.
Again, in another major move to make Umuahia a smart city, the State Government has embarked on urban renewal and beautification projects, including the relocation of traders from Isigate to Okwulaga -Afara in Umuahia.
The Commissioner for Information, Prince Okey Kanu, disclosed this while briefing newsmen after the State Executive Council meeting, presided over by Gov. Otti, on Monday, February 17.
Kanu said the State Government is on the verge of relocating the illegal Isigate market to Afara, and further noted that part of the initiative includes the construction of bus shelters within Umuahia, among others.
“In continuation of the infrastructure development agenda of the administration, the State Government is poised to embark on a number of urban renewal and beautification programmes that are geared towards making Umuahia, the state capital, a smart city.
“The State Government is on the cusp of relocating the illegal Isigate market to Afara. The idea is to decongest the city centre in Umuahia.
“Please, be informed that the land for the new market has been completed and compensation duly paid to the landowners. At this point, the building of a perimeter fencing round the market is ongoing.
“As I said earlier, the relocation is geared towards decongesting Isigate and making way for the new bus terminal and other transport and beautification projects around that part of the capital city,” the commissioner said.
He also revealed that the State Government was very intentional and determined to implement the smart city project, hence the move to remove the projections in front of buildings.
He added that the State Government, through the Umuahia Capital Development Authority, had standardised the projections across the state.
He said: “Going forward, landlords will be allowed to project their buildings and the specification is about 1.5 meters. The idea is to standardise designs for projections across the length and breadth of the state, particularly in Umuahia, Aba and Ohafia.
“Of course, you know that when the project gets on the way, it would make the state to wear a new look entirely,” Kanu noted.
He further said that part of the initiatives for the smart city was the reconstruction and expansion of the 1.385-kilometre Library Avenue (Bank Road) into a two-lane road on either side of the median.
He added that drainage improvement work is also part of the package. He said that by the time the project is completed, it would enhance the aesthetics towards the Government House from either side of Okpara Avenue to the Federal Medical Centre axis.
Kanu equally pointed out that the initiatives include the construction of bus shelters within Umuahia, adding that currently, civil works were ongoing at about 10 proposed shelters, starting from the Aguiyi Ironsi Boulevard.
There is no doubt that on completion of the ongoing Umuahia urban renewal projects, together with the proposed rehabilitation of other urban roads, Umuahia will wear a look befitting of a state capital.
However, more attention has to be paid to drainage management around the city.
Government should embark on a regular desilting of the drains, while new ones should be constructed where necessary to accommodate more rain water channelled into the Imo River and other smaller rivers around.
It is also recommended that the State Government embarks on the construction of slabs to cover the drains in the city.
Residents of the state capital should also desist from blocking the waterways and drains with sand from construction work as well as domestic wastes.
#Gov. Otti is Building the new Abia!
#To God be glory!
Ogbonnaya Ikokwu, a journalist and public affairs analyst, writes from Umuahia.