I'm in chains, you're in chains too I wear uniforms and you wear uniforms too I'm a prisoner You're a prisoner too, Mr. Jailer Oh I have fears, you have fears too I will die, but yourself will die too Life is beautiful Don't you think so too, Mr. Jailer? I'm talking to you jailer! Stop calling me a prisoner Let he who is without sin be the first to cast the stone Mr. Jailer Mr. Jailer man You suppress all my strategies You oppress whoa whoa every part of me What you don't know You're a victim too, Mr. Jailer Oh! You don't care about my point of view If I die another will work for you So you treat me like a modern slave, Mr. Jailer I'm talking to you jailer! Stop calling me a prisoner Let he who is without sin be the first to cast the stone Mr. Jailer Mr. Jailer man You see If you walking in a market place Don't throw stones Even if you do, you just might hit one of your own Life is not about your policies All the time So you better rearrange your philosophies And be good to your fellow man, Jailer! Stop calling me a prisoner Let he who is without sin be the first to cast the stone Mr. Jailer Oh, I'm talking to you jailer! Stop calling me a prisoner Let he who is without sin be the first to cast the stone Mr. Jailer Mr. Jailer I hear my baby say I wanna be president I want your money From my government What he don't know, what he would know, what he can know (Jailer) Jailer (Jailer) Jailer Oh be good whoa, be good whoa, be good woah Somebody be good whoa, be good whoa, be good Oh oh be good whoa, be good whoa, be good whoa (Jailer, Jailer)
That song was one hell of a masterpiece. We will never forget
Franzinni: what if he is a developer becasue I know some developers like him ... Who are useless ... When they develop they are lost to foolishness and stupidity... Case in point
The so called developers, no dey bear olabode and they do not have laziness and stupidity in there gene. They are known world wide to be industrious and independent. They travel afar to make ends meet. They do not stay in there parents house to be feed by aged parents. The description op gave perfectly fits helinues
I say ehn, Pep Guardiola dey use jazz seh.. I need to know who dey prepare juju for Pep wey dey make him competition always messup towards the end of the league. No be once or twice this shyte don happen.
Bro no be juju. Arsenal and Liverpool players are just very tired. Fixtures and schedules always make it favour the team with much stronger bench. I knew Liverpool will struggle, but am a bit surprised about arsenal too. Fatigue is the major reason
Port Harcourt Road and socio-economic costs of its completion
Abia state governor Alex Otti Gov. Alex Otti
By John Okiyi Kalu
ON Thursday, October 12, 2023, the government of Abia State, led by Mr. Alex Otti, gathered members and supporters of the Labour Party in the state to celebrate what they tagged the “Flag-off of the Reconstruction of Port Harcourt Road Aba by Julius Berger Construction Company, JB,” even though in reality, it was the recommencement of work along that stretch of road that was started by the Ikpeazu administration.
While Governor Otti, in his elaborate written address during the occasion, did not mention the cost of the work, which he stated would be completed in 18 months, his spokesman, during a preceding radio programme monitored in Umuahia the same day, confirmed that the job was re-awarded to JB at more than N30 billion for what the governor stated was a 6.7km urban road. For the avoidance of doubt, it was not the Abia State government that voluntarily revealed the over N30 billion cost of the Port Harcourt road, Aba, project; instead, the independent review of the PDP-led opposition in the state forced the government to admit on record that they actually awarded the project for at least N30 billion.
Geography: Contrary to what bloggers and skit makers have been fed, Port Harcourt road, Aba, is not the same as the federal road from Port Harcourt to Aba. The Port Harcourt road, Aba, under focus starts from Ngwa Road by Asa, inside Aba, and ends at Asa Nnentu spare part market, Aba. It was previously awarded in 2017 by the Ikpeazu administration for reconstruction as a six-lane road with two wide gutters that will discharge drainage waters at Umuagbai Pond and a total length of 5.9 kilometres.
I have read materials published by the administration to the effect that the total length is 6.7 kilometres. Maybe we take six kilometres as an average for the purposes of this review, but suffice it to state that about two years ago, representatives of the African Development Bank, AfDB, also measured the same road as being 5.9 kilometres, and it is in their book as such.
If we apply the same pricing template used for JB, the difference in length of almost one kilometre may have cost the state an additional N5 billion. On the other hand, Aba-Port Harcourt Express Road is a segment of the Enugu-Port Harcourt Expressway that starts from Asa Nnentu in Aba to Oyigbo in Rivers State at the Imo River boundary. It is a federal highway of about 33.7 kilometres.
For emphasis, the Abia State Government is not completing or reconstructing the Aba-Port Harcourt express road. That road is a federal road that was previously awarded to the China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation, CCECC, by the Goodluck Jonathan government in 2015, but the contract failed as far as the Aba segment is concerned. Minister David Umahi, who visited Abia, recently promised on record to get the work recommenced within record time, and we are trusting in his promise.
Mathematics of the project: Before I go into the mathematics of the project, please permit me to share some fun facts to guide you. Hartland Construction Company, which the Ikpeazu administration hired for the Port Harcourt Road Aba project in 2017, delivered the Okigwe to Umuahia segment of the Enugu-Port Harcourt Express road for the Federal Government. They are currently contracted by the same government to deliver the Umuahia-Ikot Ekpene federal road.
Similarly, Julius Berger is working for the Federal Government at different locations in Nigeria but without any presence in Abia State as of May 2023. They have now been hired by Governor Otti to complete the project started by Hartland along Port Harcourt road, Aba. But the government has yet to inform citizens of any exit arrangement between the state government and Hartland that enabled the legal takeover of the project by JB. In Nigeria, it is estimated that 60 per cent of the cost of road construction comes from materials, while the remaining 40 per cent is labour-related.
The major materials required for road construction in a state like Abia should include asphalt, cement, iron rods for gutters, laterite, granite, and sharp sand. Of course, bitumen in asphalt is mostly imported and remains the one material that will be most affected by fluctuations in forex; hence, the price of asphalt materials is subject to the international price of crude oil. It is instructive to note that some local companies in Nigeria and Abia State also have asphalt plants. Cement is locally manufactured by companies like Dangote, BUA, and Ibeto, while sand, stones, and laterite are mined locally within Abia or neighbouring states.
Analysis A. As of 2017, the Ikpeazu administration had awarded the reconstruction of the Port Harcourt road Aba project to Hartland Nig Ltd. at a cost of N9,882,752,246.4 only for a six-lane road with BRT and drains (gutters) with a discharge pipe to Umuagbai pond.
Therefore, N9.88bn in 2017 was equivalent to USD 29.6m.
Analysis B. Between April and October 2023, Alex Otti hired Julius Berger to complete the reconstruction of Port Harcourt road, Aba, with the drains already established and valued at 40 per cent of the total project, at a cost of N30 billion. Note that while the government has admitted that the opposition was right about the amount, they did not release any actual figures; hence, we have to work with N30 billion. The details given by Governor Otti on record are that the project is a six-lane road with drains on both sides. That is similar to the Ikpeazu design but without information on storm water channelling or BRT. As of the time of doing this analysis, I do not know if the existing drainage will be completely destroyed and redone or if any other addition or subtraction will affect the original design approved by the Abia State Ministry of Works in 2017.
I. According to exchange-rates.org, the average USD exchange rate to Naira in 2023 will be 588.89.
II. Using that average rate, N30bn amounts to USD50.9m.
III. The difference in dollars between the awards is therefore $21.3 million.
For those who love to denominate contracts in dollars, the 2017 contract was valued at USD 31,624,807.19 if one applied the May 2017 spot exchange rate, while the 2023 contract was valued at USD 38,684,719.54 using the October 12th spot exchange rate. The difference is USD 7,059,912.3, or N5.5b.
Socio-economics of the project: Before awarding this project to Julius Berger, the Otti government admitted that there was no competitive bidding or advertisement and that they had to source funds through virement because there was no equivalent budgetary provision for the project in 2023. The question the mathematics of the project raises is: If there was competitive bidding, would this project have cost Abians N30bn?
Whatever led to the difference in measurements of the same road from 5.9km to 6.7km may also have cost the state an additional USD 6,446,987.69 using the costing template of 6km for N30b or N5b per km. It is interesting to note that Setraco, Hartland, or any other Nigerian grade A construction company would spend at least 40 percent of the project amount to pay our local labour in Abia, including carpenters, iron benders, etc., but JB will remit funds abroad.
For a government that made heavy media noise around buying some Innoson vehicles, the question is: why use Innoson vehicles to conserve forex and, in the same breath, starve our artisans and local economy in Abia State by using JB to export forex? The hard work on the Port Harcourt road project is design, flood control, and drains, which were already done before the emergence of Otti’s administration. On Governor Otti’s claim of shoddy work done by the previous administration, I need to remind him that Ukaegbu, Umuola, Kamalu roads, etc., are eight years old and still standing. Aba road and Osaah-Umuagu Isingwu road, both in Umuahia; Azikiwe and Ngwa roads, in Aba, etc., cannot be said to be shoddy jobs.
Whereas the ongoing work by the Otti administration along College Road, Aba, where landlords have already threatened to sue the contractor, is what should be called shoddy, along with the 200-metre Cemetery Market Road, Aba, that failed one week after Otti commissioned the project with fanfare. In any case, a man who does not have any road project that has survived up to a year should be careful when talking about shoddiness while speaking to projects done by the same Governor, Okezie Ikpeazu, that brought back an Abia-born engineer from the United States of America to innovate and start the use of rigid pavement (cement) technology in road construction in the state and the region. Unlike Dave Umahi and others, Otti has not considered borrowing from this technology in any of his awarded projects.
Let me also address those who base their argument on opposition lacking the moral right to scrutinise this road project on the basis that the previous administration did not complete that particular road project. Truth be told, the road is important to Aba people, but there are other equally important roads within the city, such as Aba-Owerri Road, Ngwa Road, Faulks Road, etc., that were reconstructed by the previous administration.
If resources were available, the same administration would have evidentially completed the same Port Harcourt road because it obviously considered it important enough to award the contract and partially funded the project up to 40% of its execution, including establishing gutters and waterways. The work was also awarded to a Nigerian wholly owned grade A construction company, Hartland, the same construction company the Federal Government is using to reconstruct a segment of the Enugu-Port Harcourt federal highway as well as the Umuahia-Ikot Ekpene federal road.
If a government awards a contract, funds take off, and implementation of the project reaches the 40 per cent stage, it is a clear indication that it intends to fully execute the work but is limited by the non-availability of funds. Even the contract awarded to Julius Berger might also suffer cash flow challenges, usually occasioned by unforeseen economic adversity, unless the state government has fully paid for it. That will not mean that the government does not intend to complete the project. Every resident of Aba, including me, wants this road completed. So, we pray that the fortunes of the state and the nation will continue to improve. However, the question must be asked: if you are hungry and decide to patronize a restaurant where you are served a very delicious meal but afterwards slammed with a bankrupting bill of N100m for the food, won’t you at least ask questions?
We need an explanation for why we are paying $25 million above what the original cost of the project was in 2017, even after more than 40% of the work has been done.
Assuming the same contract was advertised by the Otti administration and possibly awarded to a good local contractor at N400m/km, the six lanes of the 6km road will amount to N14.4bn, and if the ministry of works is allowed to subtract the value of work already done, Abia State under Otti would most likely have spent less than N10bn to complete the project and use the remaining N20bn or $25.8m to do much more for Ndi Abia. I don’t know if you see me as a troublemaker or simply as someone reminding Governor Alex Otti of his commitment to the people, but suffice it to drop a quote from him during his inaugural address: “We appreciate everyone’s right to hold and express an opinion, but you must also accord other citizens the right to do the same. No one should stand in the way of the legitimate aspirations of others. Ours shall be a government of law and order.”
Speaking further. Governor Otti said: “Transparency, accountability, and public trust shall be at the centre of everything we do. We will run a responsible and honest government and lead by example. We will not tolerate any form of corruption or theft of public property. Gratification and kickbacks are totally forbidden in this government.” We are asking questions, and nobody or group can intimidate us.
Biodun concentrate on what is happening at Ibadan and leave abia and Alex otti alone. The people of abia still love there governor. Abi na ur papa money dem dey use build the road ? What is wrong with some of you yoruba clowns ?
Righteousness2: Over 90% were successfully Intercepted by Israel Iron dome. The rest fell in open areas. No injuries reported. That is the video Below.
No country on earth will have even one rocket Fired at it with no Consequence.
When israel begins to return Lebanon back to stone age, we dont want to hear anybody Cry UN, UNESCO, WHO and all that bull crap noise.
PureFace1: The standard of borehole Peter Obi is building all over the north is too low for someone that Obidients called the messiah of Nigeria and say will bring Nigeria to the promise land.
If Peter Obi is donating sub standard common borehole like this in the north in this century and people are praising him for it, he will think it is normal to build sub standard and low quality roads, bridges, hospitals etc if he ever get to power in the future and expect people to appreciate it and praise him over it too.
Peter Obi followers claimed he is different from the rest of Nigerian politicians but he is regurgitating the same mediocrity and low standards known all over Nigeria even Ayrr star did better than this.
Peter Obi look down on the north too much, i don't think he can ever commission something as sub standard as this anywhere in the south.
How many borehole did your useless father build in his entire hatefilled, redundant, miserable life ? Did he achieve anything other than birthing a goat like you ?
Don't blame those his fans ....most of them are voting for the first time that's why they are so naive. Me I still can't fathom how a PO will be a better politician or leader than PBAT or AA...I just can't
Opono!! Can you show us one good policy that has benefitted the massed, your druggie role model has implemented, since coming into power ?
PressMyButton: Most idiotic statement ever. 8 out of 10 times when this man talks infront of a microphone, he vomits trash. It is like saying, you deliberately serve people a plate of stone rice because you want others to be provoked and deliver clean rice to the masses. Worse of all, he was saying this in the palace of an emir. I wasn't informed of northerners write him a letter to come dig boreholes for them neither is he the first southerner to donate projects in the north. When we talk about how mediocre he was as Governor, some ignorant folks would start kicking themselves to the floor. He has confessed with his own mouth how shameful and disgraceful that he couldn't deliver an ordinary borehole.
Fool, what have you done for humanity, in your entire miserable life ?
jaszplus12: I just think the joke is on the women. You take her abroad, she begins to give you attitude, you charge up and prep for the showdown knowing full well she's going to throw you out. You lose kids and fortune, but not your spirit, pick up the pieces and move on.... Guess what? Now she's in money! She has your kids, plus child support! BUT, ONE THING! She loses dignity and now men will only use her to pass time, she's definitely going to seek gratification that's where her mental torture will start...she becomes a field mattress, no permanent boyfriend, her children see her being used and dumped, she can only try to explain but not for all time, chores will double, she's alone caring for the children, school runs, emotional support, work, and all... Her friends and advisers no longer have the solution to her crisis! The children will surely want their dad someday, no matter how long it takes and how much poison she's injected into their minds!
Poor rejected man will start afresh, seeking gratification isn't going to be a big deal, less physical trauma of house chores, nagging and children issues to deal with, just get another job and run yourself a little, few years hence results will begin to manifest.... Unless you bury yourself in self pity and unnecessary depression....or...
Unless you were deliberately wicked to her then karma will visit you...
My humble opinion... Let the women continue.. .
You have a point though. But child support will still eat into what you earn. You didn't factor that in
Cadbury is in great hands. The majority shareholder is getting a steal by increasing its stake in Cadbury Nigeria immediately after a forex devaluation before the naira recovers fully and cancel their forex gain in naira; purely smart business decision. You don't increase your stake in a bad business. Check my signature for free stuffs!
Dumbo !! Are you also going to call them enemy of Nigeria, for daring to report huge loss under tinubu ? Always spewing rubbish.
Politics / Re: Efcc Should Go After Musicians Eg Psquare, Davido by Great0ne1: 11:43am On Apr 28
