Smart Schools: Enugu Govt Sacks Contractor Over Structural Defects
The Enugu State government says it disengaged the contractor handling one of its Smart Green Schools over sub-standard project execution.
The Secretary to the State Government, Prof Chidebere Onyia, stated this in a release on Sunday. The statement was sequel to a viral video showing structural defects, including cracked walls, at one of the schools.
Onyia admitted to the veracity of the video, but clarified that the situation had been addressed even before the video surfaced. He assured the residents of the state that proactive measures were adopted immediately the cracks were noticed.
According to him, “The defects had already been identified through our internal monitoring systems well before the video surfaced on social media. The state government promptly terminated the contract and disengaged the contractor responsible for the substandard execution. The affected site was also flagged and scheduled for full remediation to meet the high structural and safety standards that the Governor Peter Mbah administration has committed to uphold.”
Onyia stated that to ensure that such lapses were prevented across the 260 Smart Schools, the government established a three-tiered quality control and monitoring mechanism, comprising local government engineers, the Ministry of Works and Infrastructure, and the Governor’s Delivery Unit under the Office of the Secretary to the State Government.
He stated that, “This multi-layered approach ensures that no structural flaw goes undetected and that corrective actions are taken swiftly and without compromise.”
He explained that the portrayal in the video was an isolated incident in a vast number of over 1,500 ongoing projects under the Mbah administration.
He added, “There may be attempts by unscrupulous contractors to cut corners, but we are fully equipped to detect, expose, and correct such deviations promptly. Indeed, this case is proof that our systems work. The Peter Mbah administration remains committed to delivering world-class educational infrastructure that will serve our children and communities for generations to come.”
Smart Schools: Enugu Govt Sacks Contractor Over Structural Defects is first published on The Whistler Newspaper
