The Managing Director of Imo State Oil Producing Communities, Anthony Okwuosha, yesterday announced that it would cost over four hundred million Naira, to restore electricity in the oil communities of Ohaji /Egbema and Oguta Local Government Areas of Imo state.
Okwuosha disclosed this in Owerri, through his Special Adviser on Media and Communication, Collins Ughallaa, during an interaction with staff and volunteers of the Alternative Dispute Resolution , ADR, of ISOPADEC. Okwuosha, claimed that the past government was owing Enugu Electricity Distribution Company, EEDC, N150 million.
He pointed out that since he came on board that major parts of Oguta and Ohaji/Egbema local government areas have been provided electricity and that work is ongoing to complete it in other areas. He said:
“ISOPADEC is now restoring electricity in Ohaji-Egbema and Oguta LGAs and ending the eight years of darkness in our communities. The last government told us they were using ISOPADEC money to pay for electricity bills for Oguta and Ohaji-Egbema.
“They ended up owing EEDC over N150M yet we never had electricity for the period of eight years they were in power. We met with the EEDC and discussed the challenges and paid them part of the money.
“We insisted they fixed the electricity in our communities before we continue the discussion with them. They have gone to Oguta and done some work and parts of Oguta LGA now have electricity.
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“They have also gone to Ohaji-Egbema and evaluated the situation and informed us of what they intend to do in the area. It is over 25km stretch of the road. We will develop it and have substations at some points.”
He pointed out that the “Project will cost over N400M. But we are determined to do it for the benefit of our people. We have done the engineering design and others. roads, agriculture, job creation, training, and bursary.
“We want to help our mothers at home in what they do in agriculture by making it simpler for them and increasing their margin so that even the youths could be attracted to it. Our farm programme is huge and has the capacity to absorb those of our brothers who chose to live in the bush.
“We have programmes that will support every single person in our communities. For the first time in the history of ISOPADEC, every single person from our communities will feel that he is from the oil-producing communities.
“To get good results takes time and sacrifice. The planning of any meaningful project is usually difficult.
But if we get the planning right we also need to get the execution right. “We are making sure that we get it right and we are not leaving anybody behind. We will use ISOPADEC fund to work for our people and not share it to a few people.
“In the last eight years there used to be different groups under ISOPADEC which were used to share money to a few people. None of those groups can account for the monies they got.”
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