Enugu Gov’t Gives Contractors 24 Hours Ultimatum To Replace Damaged Public Infrastructure

Enugu State government has given contractors of construction companies, entities and individuals engaged in road construction, public and private installations of fibre optic cables and other similar projects 24 hours to replace and fix all damaged infrastructure and other public facilities caused by them and their agents’ activities in the state or risked being blacklisted by the government.

While threatening to commence the process of blacklisting and prosecuting erring companies and individuals willfully engaging in the acts of sabotage against government facilities, the government said it was dismayed at the level of the brazen impunity these contractors and companies had been frustrating the efforts of the government towards ensuring that the basic amenities provided for the people were enjoyed by them.

Addressing a stakeholder’s meeting involving individuals, contractors, companies and service providers digging and trenching in the state, and representatives of Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) which have some of their facilities buried under the ground, Monday, at the Government House, Enugu, the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Prof. Chidiebere Onyia, said all the parties carrying out trenching in the state have a duty of care of ensuring that existing facilities are protected and replaced where damages occur.

He lamented that water supply lines, gas lines, electricity installations, sewage lines, fibre optic cables, internet, mobile phone masts and telephones wires, roads, drainages, kerbs, pedestrian paths, dedicated lanes, emergency lanes, trees and flowers, green areas, buildings, and other accessories or other utilities incidental to critical infrastructure were being sabotaged and vandalized with impunity by contractors, companies and their workers.

He charged the MDAs responsible for supervisory role or oversight functions to ensure that they carry out their duty without fear, stressing that the state was taking stringent steps that would deter people from destroying public utilities and other critical infrastructure.

“Contractor shall repair any damage to critical infrastructure within 24 hours of the occurrence of the damage, and shall guarantee that repair of damages by the contractor shall restore the damaged utility and critical infrastructure to the original state of the infrastructure as if damage did not occur.

“Contractor hereby indemnifies the state for any damage done or reasonably deemed to have been done to any utility and critical infrastructure during the work or a post-work impact of the work by the contractor.

“The contractor commits to pay daily penalty shall for any period in which the damage remains unrepaired after 24 hours of the damage. Where the state fixes the damage, the contractor shall pay any costs which the state issues for the repair work,” part of the indemnity clause jointly reached by the stakeholders read.