The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Niger state has carpeted the stat state Commissioner for Local Governments, Chieftaincy Affairs and Community Development, Alhaji Isah Kantigi, for conceding the fact that contractors handling 10km road projects across the 25 local government areas of the state awarded over five years ago at the cost of N12 billion, have abandoned sites after collecting mobilisation since 2009.
The party said the confirmation of this development by the commissioner during a sponsored media tour of the projects last week was a clear demonstration that the state government has failed the people at the rural areas thereby vindicating APC’s stance that the administration‘s claim to executing gigantic projects was only on paper and not reality.
APC publicity secretary, Mr. Jonathan Vatsa, stated this at the weekend in an interactive session with journalists, adding that the commissioner has also exposed the ruthless manner in which the local governments connived with the state governor, Mu’azu Babangida Aliyu, to plunder public funds.
However in a swift reaction, the Chief Press Secretary to Governor, Israel Ebije, has described the APC as derailing from the role of the opposition to complement that of the ruling party in identifying lapses which is meant to keep government in power on track in the area of dividends of democracy.
He said, “The Niger APC has instead embarked on a guerrilla attack based on jaundice opinion of ill informed and self seeking hooded individuals located within the party.”