A bridge located at a children’s amusement park in Owerri has collapsed.
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The collapse of the park bridge has again raised questions on the quality of projects built by Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo State.
The bridge was said to have collapsed after a donwpour leading to pandemonium in the area which gave rise to fresh criticisms on the quality of some projects embarked on by the State government.
The bridge is a tourist site and has been used to generate funds for the State government.
An eyewitness said the bridge collapsed after a windstorm that came with the rain.He said no live was lost as the usual fun seekers mainly parents and children who throng the amusement park were not around when the incident occurred.
Some concerned Imolites who spoke on the incident called on the State government to take a second look at all the construction projects going on in the State.
” This is very sad and has made us believe that some of the ongoing projects in the State are truly substandard and of low quality.
“The State government should employ professional hands or bodies to supervise these projects” he said
The News Agency of Nigeria NAN quoted the Imo State Chairman of the Nigeria Society Of Engineers, Mr. Emeka Ugoanyanwu to have earlier warned against substandard engineering work in the State.
It would be recalled that the National President of Council For the Regulation of Engineers in Nigeria (COREN) Mr.Kashim Ali had recently faulted the quality of a flyover constructed by the Okorocha administration located at Orji.
EX GOVERNOR OHAKIM REACTS
Former Imo State Governor, Ikedi Ohakim said the bridge collapse “brings to the fore once more the fact that Governor Okorocha does not have respect for engineering procedure and standard, the magnitude of disaster he has been and how Imo people on daily basis live with the fear of the unknown because of the ineptitude of the Governor”
He stated “More than 70% of the projects under Okorocha has collapsed. These projects range from collapsed pre-cast school buildings, Princess Hotel, tunnels, and include the collapse of the twin rivers Otamiri and Nworie for which Owerri was created as the capital city of Imo State, the collapse of the Orji Flyover for which the Council for the Regulation of Engineers in Nigeria (COREN) had alerted the whole world that it had collapsed, forcing the state government to resort to erecting supporting-beams under it. Roads built under Okorocha has also collapsed.
“Apart from the collapsed physical infrastructures, the Imo State economy for the first time collapsed under Okorocha with the state government claiming it had gone insolvent. The government under Okorocha has also collapsed the middle class and small scale businesses in the state with its attendant wide spread hunger and death, with mortuary businesses in the state peaking at 84 against 11 mortuaries in 2011. Under Okorocha, health and water infrastructures have collapsed. Education has also most embarrassingly collapsed in the midst of government’s unplanned and shabbily implemented free education policy” he stated.