By Felix Igbekoyi
Correspondent, Asaba
THE infrastructural and human capital development of Delta State has received commendation as the Federal Government lauded the state for committing millions of naira to provide Low-Cost Housing for civil servants in the state.
The houses, which were billed for completion within six months, got approval of over N614.9 million for the construction of phase I of the project, comprising 150 housing units last year. Commissioner for Housing, Chief Paulinus Akpeki, conducting a delegation from the Federal Ministry of Housing, led by the Assistant Director (Architectoral Science), Akinola Saura, round the project site, said the houses have been highly subsidized for low-cadre civil servants in the state to benefit. He said, “As at the time we conceptualized the project, many in the government of His Excellency, Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan, had thought it was going to be one of those failed projects. Initially, we placed it on Owner-Occupier Basis (OOB) but now that we have gotten it right to this level, we have worked on a system that will make it Owner-Occupier Mortgage (OOM).” According to him, the state government would not make above N200,000 on each units after their commissioning, maintaining that the cost the ministry put in was low after serious consultations. While stating that the project could not take-off early because the mobilization fees could not be accessed until two months ago, maintained that once the place is electrified, the roads tarred and borehole already sunk at the site is upgraded, the place would become another city of its own when Governor Uduaghan must have commissioned it during his birthday. Akinola, who expressed confidence that in the next one month, the units, comprising one-bedroom, two-bedroom and three-bedroom flats respectively, all of which were at their roofing stages, implored the state to reserve a dedicated account for housing construction on yearly basis.
“I implore the state to make it a seed-money on yearly basis for its Ministry of Housing to build 200 low-cost houses to cushion the effects of homelessness among civil servants”, Akinola advised.
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