By Yemi Olakitan
The UN-Habitat team working on the Aba Structure Plan has been tasked by the governor of Abia State, Okezie Ikpeazu, to move quickly in order to prevent any subsequent administrations from being able to reverse the plan.
Ikpeazu gave the order on December 26, 2022, in Aba, the capital city and commercial hub of the state, when a team from the Abia Ministry of Lands, Survey, and Urban Planning paid him a visit to count his household.
He stated that he wanted the state government to leave behind the structured plans for Aba, Umuahia, and Ohafia because they served as the foundation for all future growth. “There is a relationship with the physical environment for any growth anybody wishes to pursue, whether it be in economic sustainability, crime management, or prudent use of water or power.” Without a floor design, the complex interactions between people and their surroundings will cause disruptions that might be challenging to fix.
The greatest moment to carry out what we could have done yesterday is now because we couldn’t do it earlier. Therefore, we don’t feel bad saying we’re starting it now,” he said. The team’s accomplishments, according to the governor, would distinguish his legacy from those of prior administrations.
He promised not to discuss roads and bridges when discussing his legacies.
“I’ll talk about the structure plan because it serves as the framework and foundation for all future superstructures for our state.
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“If it’s possible, expedite your work so that I can claim some of the credit for what you’re doing and stand on the rostrum and declare how far I’ve come.
“I’ll carry it to a point where nobody will be able to reverse it,” he declared.
Chief Ikechi Aaron, the Permanent Secretary in the ministry, praised Ikpeazu in his remarks for the chance to work on the fulfilment of his pledge to obtain structured plans for Umuahia, Aba, and Ohafia.
According to him, the pilot project for the plan was initiated in Aba, and the team visited the governor since the work had reached the point of enumeration.
Earlier, Mr. Akintobi Olusanmi, the UN-Habitat Programme Consultant and Geological Information System expert, said that with the governor’s assistance, the team had begun work on the Aba Structure Plan in February.
He claimed that the base map of the project in Aba and the surrounding area had been finished, and that meetings with the Abia government’s ministries, departments, and agencies to solicit their feedback had come to an end.
In order to inform Aba locals, the team also convened a stakeholders meeting on December 21, but the attendance was low because residents were preoccupied with holiday activities.
Olusanmi promised that the meeting will be rescheduled so that locals could participate meaningfully.
