Executive Director, Projects, the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Mr Samuel Adjogbe, has explained that the pace of the work on the 13-floor permanent corporate headquarters of the commission was slowed down by slow cash flow.
He, however, said work on the headquarters complex project of the interventionist agency, located at the Eastern Bye Pass, Port Harcourt, Rivers State, has reached an advanced stage, following the recent transfer of the project to a new contractor.
Adjogbe, who inspected the project on Thursday, noted that the slow fund flow affected the pace of the work, noting however that the funding challenge had been addressed with the recent release of money for the project.
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“We were able to pay some money to the contractors and hopefully by next week we will release more funds for the project”, he said in a statement signed by the agency’s Director, Corporate Affairs, Dr Ibitoye Abosede and made available to the Nigerian Tribune on Thursday.
The NDDC Executive Director, Projects, expressed satisfaction with the quality of work on the main building and other ancillary structures, comprising facilities such as a medical centre, restaurant, bank and car parks, among others.
“In terms of quality and safety, I am satisfied. But in terms of progress, we need to do more. We ought to have gone very far in the project by now were it not for financial constraints.
“Most of the pieces of equipment has been acquired and delivered to site waiting for installation. We are encouraging the contractor to go into day and night duty shifts to enable us to record more progress,” he said.
Adjogbe further said that when the current board of the commission took over in November 2016, it decided to fast-track the project, hence, the injection of a new lease of life into the project.
He assured that NDDC would provide all the necessary support to ensure that the project was completed expeditiously, stating that the commission would not compromise on both the quality and approved designs.
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