Three excavators will be deployed to remove a 60-metre mountain on the Afikpo-Uturu-Okigwe Federal Road in Imo State, Works Minister David Umahi said on Saturday.
Umahi spoke in Okigwe during an inspection of the 65-kilometre highway, where preparatory work has started at the mountain section for excavation and earthworks.
The difficult section has been blamed by the minister for several fatal accidents along the route. He said removing the natural obstacle would make the road safer for motorists using the corridor.
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“This mountain, by the command of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, must collapse for the people of South-East,” Umahi said.
The highway is being built under the Federal Government’s tax-credit scheme, with Dangote Industries Limited as sponsor and Hi-Tech Construction as contractor.
Excavators ready for mountain work
The Managing Director of Hi-Tech Construction, Christopher Aucamp, said preparations had started at the mountain section ahead of major excavation work.
“This is the mountain we’ve been talking about. This is the mountain where we have to do the realisation of the nine kilometres. As you can see, we are busy with progress on it,” Aucamp said.
He said three excavators would be taken to the site to help cut the mountain and reshape the difficult terrain.
“We bring three excavators down so we can start demolishing the mountain and start filling the full areas to straighten the road out a little bit,” he said.
Aucamp also said the contractor was building a second bypass around the work area. The bypass is intended to provide safer passage for students and other road users during construction.
Umahi said the mountain was more than 60 metres high and had presented a serious safety problem for people travelling along the road.
“This place is very challenging. We have a mountain that is over 60 metres high. If God helps us in the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to achieve this, this will be a major saving of lives for the people of South-East. This place has consumed many lives,” he said.
The minister said more than 20 kilometres of the 65-kilometre road had already been completed. He also praised the contractor for the quality of the work, especially the concrete pavement used on the highway.
Road connects three states
The Project Controller, Maxwell Oko, said the Highway F112 project consists of 9.9 kilometres of dual carriageway and 55.55 kilometres of single carriageway.
He said Dangote Industries Limited was sponsoring the project under the tax-credit arrangement, with Hi-Tech Construction handling the construction.
The highway runs through Ebonyi, Abia and Imo states. Oko said it serves as an important route linking communities and other Federal highways in the three states.
The road is also expected to improve the movement of goods and people between the states and provide easier access to markets and other places.
Umahi said his decision to support Tinubu in the 2027 presidential election was based on projects being carried out by the Federal Government.
“I won’t vote for Obi but Tinubu, is that a crime?” Umahi asked.
He said he would campaign for Tinubu and vote for him because of the projects being carried out in different parts of the country.
The minister also said the Southeast would vote massively for Tinubu because of road projects and other government projects in the region.
The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Community Engagement, Southeast, Chioma Nweze, commended the Federal Government for its road projects in the region.
Nweze listed the Enugu-Onitsha, Enugu-Port Harcourt, Enugu-Abakaliki, Abakaliki Trans-Sahara and Onitsha-Owerri roads among the Federal Government projects in the Southeast.
She said the Afikpo-Uturu-Okigwe road would improve connections between communities and markets in Ebonyi, Abia and Imo states.
The highway is expected to improve access to markets and institutions and make travel along adjoining interstate highways easier when completed.
The immediate task on the Afikpo-Uturu-Okigwe route is the excavation of the mountain section, with three excavators set for the work.
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