Ali Abare, Gombe
Governor Ibrahim Hassan Dankwambo of Gombe State has warned traders around Dukku motorpark, in Gombe metropolis, to desist from encroaching on land already acquired and compensated paid for by the state government.
Governor Dankwambo stated this while on routine inspection of ongoing projects within the state capital.
The governor, who expressed dismay at the slum gradually emerging along the Dukku Road Roundabout, warned that the state government would not take it kindly with encroachers, saying there were plans to built shops in the affected areas.
The governor also warned the encroachers to desist from erecting slums in the area as government has perfected plans to construct shops on the land, urging traders in the area to be patient with government as some of them may end up being beneficiaries of the shops.
“We need to upgrade and modernize the environment so that it would be healthy for all of us,” he said.
Governor Dankwambo commended the state Ministry of Works for supervising the project as well as the contractor, Tinka Point Nigeria Limited for the quality of work. “I’m sure this will stand the taste of time.”
He, however, expressed the need to compensate additional house owners in the area to enable for the expansion of drainages to contain the rising volume of flowing water.
At the ongoing Sharia Court of Appeal and Library Complex project, the governor, who was taken round the expansive building by the contractor, told journalists that the idea behind the project was to provide accommodation for the Sharia Courts as has since been done for the High Courts.
“These are institutions that are supposed to have been built on the day of the creation of the state. It’s our responsibility to ensure that government is well established first and then the take-off of democracy would be assured,” he said.
Governor Dankwambo described the standard of the work as satisfactory, stressing that by the adjustment the contractors have done to some of the designs, they have shown professionalism and have not taken anything for granted.
“We are anxious to complete the project because it started a long time ago. We will make sure everything possible to mobilise the consultants and contractors to ensure its completion in good time. The target completion time is five or six months and we will make sure we strictly adhere to that time limit,” he said.
The contractor handling the project, Kano-based Maritalia Limited, told the governor the work is presently at 45 percent completion.