Since the inauguration of Engr. Ignatius Edet as the chairman, Uyo Capital City Development Authority (UCCDA) by the State Governor, Chief Godswill Akpabio last year, the erudite and efficient gentle man has continued to demonstrate passion and commitment to the task of make Uyo capital city a model in Nigeria.
The UCCDA board headed by Engr. Ignatius Edet comprises other tested and committed members and staff who in no small measure have been able to ensure that the vision of Engr. Edet in ensuring the transformation of the Capital City is what it should be so as to compete with other developed nations of the world.
Engr. Edet who is a seasoned politician and a tested Engineer cum technocrat is knowledgeable in what it takes to make a model city out of the town due to his exposure and connections around the world and he is leaving no stone unturned by ensuring that developers in the State adhere to the development master plan of Uyo Capital City.
The present board of UCCDA headed by the tested engineer swung into action soon after the inauguration of the board and enforced compliance to the directives of the government to ensure that the Capital City is decongested by ascertaining that the right structure is erected at the right place through the effective planning of the city.
Since his assumption into office, Engr. Edet has shown the capacity to deliver on the mandate and challenging task of decongesting the already crowded Uyo Capital City to depict a model town in the country which can also be compared to other cities in the world.
As a man endowed with good leadership ability and skills, the UCCDA chairman understands that inspite of his efforts and that of his board members and staff, he can achieve just a little result without the cooperation of relevant stakeholders, developers and the general public, hence the regular mounting of seminars and workshops to sensitize the public on the programmes and activities of UCCDA and how they can help to achieve his lofty vision for the State.
As a former Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Engr. Edet knows how to communicate effectively with people through his God-given sense of humour that is capable of turning anger and contention into laughter thereby passing the message across to the people without any stress.
Despite the enormous challenges and uncertainty which surrounded the board after the demise of the former chairman, Mr. Charles Umana, Engr. Edet has clearly shown that success can be achieved in the midst of uncertainty and confusion through dedication and commitment to a particular course of service one is engaged in.
The replacement of containers in the capital city with modern structures and the demolition of other illegal structures unapproved by the UCCDA has been the major bone of contention and challenge of the UCCDA causing the board to slow-down on illegal developers within it area of operation.
Though it has not been an easy fight with the many opposers of the board, Engr. Edet has assured the public that his leadership will stop at nothing to ensure that all developers within the UCCDA area adhere strictly to the development master plan of the State.
This commitment, the board has consistently demonstrated through its operation of removing containers and illegal structures within the Capital City to allow the free flow of model buildings in line with the Uyo Capital City master plan.
As a learned gentleman full of humility and commitment to service, Mr. Ignatius understands the importance of working with people to achieve the needed effective result in service. This must have warranted the recent stakeholders meeting organized by the UCCDA to discuss the physical development of the Uyo Capital City, last year December.
The stakeholders meeting which had in attendance all relevant ministries, Local Government Chairpersons, Paramount Rulers, Clan Heads, Village Heads, Chairpersons, Secretaries of village councils, youths and women leaders from the villages making up Uyo Capital City saw the discussion of matters of mutual benefit.
The gathering which was also attended by the State Governor, Chief Godswill Akpabio, represented by the Commissioner for Lands and Town Planning, Obong Eno Akpan, the Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Elder Samuel Ikon and others, afforded the UCCDA the opportunity of getting to know the minds of the traditional rulers in tackling the menace of illegal developers and selling of lands within the UCCDA area.
Major stakeholders including the traditional rulers, politicians, youths and women leaders were allowed to speak their minds and ask questions without any restrain. Despite the accumulated anger and criticisms, Engr. Edet used his good sense of humour to disabuse the people’s mind that the UCCDA is not acting on government’s directives.
The board chairman told the people that UCCDA as a parastatal of the government and cannot do anything on its own without the approval of the State Government.
At the end of the meeting, the major stakeholders who were physically present agreed to work together to support the UCCDA to ensure that Uyo Capital City stands out as a model city in the country. The meeting was also attended by the architects, surveyors and other town planners.
Engr. Edet used the occasion to outline the major challenges and setbacks of the board to include; poor documentation, abuse of government personnel and equipment while on duty, trying to control physical development in terms of demolishing illegal structures, as well as protecting the government’s interest. He noted also that staffs of the board have been exposed to physical assault and other threats to life by illegal developers and other disgruntled members of the public over time and frowned at such act.
He also listed other setbacks to include; indiscriminate siting of markets, estates, parks and road which have in no little measure contributed greatly to flooding of the roads; encroachment on government’s land through burial, lack of vehicles for mobility, provision of basic infrastructures, amenities and recreational facilities.
Engr. Edet further enumerated that activities like hawking and selling on roads and pedestrian walkways, littering of containers and makeshift structures on the roads, indiscriminate siting of sign posts, impersonation and touting activities, indiscriminate siting of communication mast, molding of blocks, cracking of hard core on government lands, and indiscriminate placement of refuse receptacles on the road are part of the challenges facing the UCCDA.
Irrespective of the challenges as enumerated by the board chairman, the UCCDA through hard work, dedication and commitment coupled with the vision of the chairman have recorded mile-stones of achievement which include; public enlightenment, recovering of Ikpa road – Uniuyo-Urua Ekpa junction from illegal traders and removal of their shanties, clearing of illegal scrap site along Edet Akpan Avenue, clearing of shanties around Abak road up to Ekom Iman junction, clearing of all makeshift structures on Wellington Bassey Way thus, revealing the beauty of the main entry to the seat of government and monitoring the recovered areas to avoid re-usage by dwellers.
Others are; routine marking of illegal structures, clearing and restoring the beauty of Uyo Area Command Police Station at Ewet Housing, completion of the review of the approved building plan for the proposed Uyo Capital City office building (UCCDA house), partnership with transport ministry to remove illegal parks, marking and coding buildings for payment of compensation at phase II and III of ring road, enforcement of burial laws, and securement of about 10 sites for government and private projects.
It is important to note that all these achievements would not have been possible without the commitment of the board chairman and members to deliver on its core mandate as established by law.
According to Kenneth Blanchard, “There is a clear difference between interest and commitment, when you are interested in doing something, you only do it when it is convenient, when you are committed to something, you accept no excuses, only result”. This has clearly explained why Engr. Edet is achieving all these successes. His commitment has delivered a model Uyo Capital City that will stand the test of time and compete with other cities.
The UCCDA which was established by law has the core mandate of preparing a master plan for the physical development of the city, provide appropriate infrastructure for the city, identify and promote siting of appropriate industries in the city, plan and control development, to generate satellite towns around the city.
Others include establishment of residential, commercial, and industrial layouts in the city, provision of adequate housing for people to control, regulation of building standards in the city and the implementation of burial law. All these, the indefatigable board chairman, Engr. Edet is tackling with vigour, passion and commitment to deliver on the development plan of the city.
With these achievements within his short stay in office, Engr. Edet has clearly shown his commitment to make Uyo Capital City a model city in the country before his exit. Just as the reward for hard work is always more work, it is not out of place for one to conclude that more work and service to humanity is ahead of Engr. Edet come 2015.
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