He Anambra State Government says it has commissioned the design of a master plan for the construction of railway lines to facilitate transportation and boost the state’s economy.
The Director General of Anambra State Public Procurement Office, Okey Ezeobi, made the disclosure while speaking to journalists in Awka on Tuesday.
Ezeobi said Governor Charles Soludo’s administration had engaged a Canada-based infrastructure advisory organization, CPCS Transcom Limited, to prepare and design the rail line master plan for the state.
He said the railway lines would run from Onitsha, the commercial hub of the state, to Ihiala, targeting Oseokwa port via Nnewi, Igbo-Ukwu, Ekwulobia, Oko to Umunze, the border town with Abia and Imo.
According to him, one rail line will go to Awka and another through Anambra North, heading towards the state border with Kogi.
“The governor is a futurist,” Ezeobi said.
“You are looking at the state’s economy over the next 10 to 20 years and it needs to be boosted by providing an enabling environment for the economy and people to thrive.
“And for us to have a vibrant economy with a higher GDP, transportation is a huge infrastructure that we need.
“We are already courting the federal government to have ports in Onitsha and Oseokwa in the Ihiala area.
“If containers are brought, the fastest and most economical way to get them out of the port is by rail.
“These are sustainable developments that, when feasibility studies are carried out, are bankable projects.”
Compliance with due process in public procurement
Regarding the level of compliance with due process in public procurement, he said it was “100 percent” at the state level but “still poor” at the local government level.
He said the agency would organize a six-day capacity-building program for chairmen of transition committees in the state’s 21 local government councils and their procurement officers.
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“Hiring is a process that must reflect transparency.
“It tells people what the government is doing and gives them enough information to question public officials.
“As public officials, local government leaders must be held accountable in the management of public funds.
“The state procurement process must be well defined so that residents know that the taxes collected from them are being used appropriately,” Ezeobi said.
(YAYA)