Sematech Nigeria Ltd has attributed the slow pace of the rehabilitation of the Calabar-Itu road to unpaid debts.

The firm’s spokesman, Ita Asuquo, disclosed this in an interview  in Calabar on Thursday.

Mr Asuquo spoke against the backdrop of public outcry over the company’s alleged abandonment of the project.

He said that work on the project slowed down significantly on the section of the road awarded to the company due to the nonpayment by the federal government.

He regretted that the company could no longer sustain work on the project through bank facilities.

Mr Asuquo also said that the claim that the company abandoned the project was misleading, pointing out that the company had continued work to ease traffic and reduce travel time, “even without payment.

“Sematech’s situation is verifiable. No contractor can effectively execute a major project without receiving funds from the awarding authority. If the Federal Government releases payment today, the company can complete its section of the project within two years,” he said.

Mr Asuquo also said that the payment of compensation to communities affected by the project was not Sematech’s responsibility but the sole responsibility of the federal government, in collaboration with the concerned state governments.

“Sematech had made several efforts to ensure compensation issues were addressed through the appropriate government channels,” he said.

He urged the public to direct compensation-related demands to the relevant federal and state authorities, not to the contractor.

Mr Asuquo further said that the contract was awarded by the previous administration and that delays under the present administration were “procedural, not deliberate”.

He called for people’s patience, saying that the company remained committed to completing the project once payments were made. He appealed to the federal government to release funds to expedite and improve the work on the road.

Meanwhile, a federal comptroller of works, Olayinka Onafuye, confirmed that Sematech had not left the site, although the work was slow.

“Sematech has almost completed one lane of the road allotted to it. Once compensation is paid and the indigenes vacate the affected corridors, work will continue on the other lane,” Mr Onafuye said.

The Calabar-Itu road, which connects Akwa Ibom and Cross River, has suffered protracted dilapidation, while its rehabilitation has lingered for many years.

A N185 billion contract for the rehabilitation of the road was awarded in 2021 to four companies, including Sematech.

(NAN)