Fowmout Nigeria Limited, the contracting firm handling the 500-seater auditorium at the Delta State College of Health Technology Ofuoma-Ughelli in Ughelli North Local Government Area has been directed to stop work due to poor execution of the project.
The Special Adviser to the Governor on Project Monitoring and Audit, Dr Goodnews Agbi, handed down the directive to the firm led by Mr Friday Iyenagbe, when he led top management of his office to monitor ongoing projects in the state.
Dr Agbi said it was imperative to stop the job due to architectural defects observed and failure of the contracting firm to use beams to fortify the auditorium.
He said failure to address observed challenges may lead to collapse of the structure in future if allowed to be completed and put to use.
He said the administration of Governor Sheriff Oborevwori has zero tolerance for shoddy jobs and advised contractors to stick to standard or face severe sanctions.
“It is a very bad work, terrible work and terrible construction. Incidentally the person on site is not an engineer, so I am not surprised they are having this work.
“12mm as column for a structure like, I mean it is criminal. And this is students auditorium, it can collapse on their heads any day. The next thing they will say Delta State Government collapses. We cannot take that.
“The person on site does not know 12mm, 16mm, so how can he supervise such a big structure. So, we are very, very disappointed,” said Dr Agbi.
Also speaking on the project, the Executive Assistant to the Governor on Project Monitoring, Dr Blessing Enamuotor said the job was done without strict adherence to engineering laws in erecting such a gigantic auditorium and affirmed that imminent collapse was inevitable if the errors were not urgently addressed.
The provost of the School, Dr Augustina Erha thanked the State Government for attracting more projects to the institution and for supervising the auditorium and also appealed that the defects noticed be addressed for the early completion of the job.
The Special Adviser, Dr Agbi was also at the Delta State High Court building in Asaba, where he was joined by the Secretary to State Government (SSG), Dr Kingsley Emu and the Commissioner for Works in Charge of Rural and Riverine Roads, Mr Charles Aniagwu.
They expressed joy at the way the contractor has intensified efforts to meet the deadline.
They further affirmed that the edifice will be inaugurated and put to use before May 29 when the present administration will clock one year in office.
Also in Asaba, Dr Agbi inspected the ongoing eight bungalows in the Commissioner’s quarters being built by the present administration.
During the inspection, the Commissioner for Housing, Hon Godknows Angele and the Special Adviser commended the contractor for the pace of work and enjoined him to ensure they complete the job before the end of August.
Dr Agbi and his team were also at the Central Hospital Ughelli where they inspected some projects.
Projects inspected included the new mortuary building, the Dental clinic structure and the landscaping of the hospital.
He also inspected an abandoned ward clinic edifice where he promised to report to the appropriate authorities on the need to revive the project due to its relevance to the hospital.
Dr Agbi said professionalism, excellence, transparency, objectivity and best practices will remain the cardinal goals of his office in project monitoring and auditing.
The Medical Director of the Central Hospital Ughelli, Dr Valentine Eziashi thanked Governor Sheriff Oborevwori for his policy thrust in the health sector promising to put the projects into good use upon completion.
