₦246m ‘unbuilt’ A’Ibom bridge declared completed in 2023, reappeared in 2024, 2025 budgets — Report

A ₦246 million bridge repair project in Akwa Ibom State, declared finished by a Federal Ministry of Works contractor, has been found unexecuted, according to findings by MonITNG, a civic technology platform that tracks government projects.

The project, titled Repair of Ndiya Bridge at KM20+000 along Ekparakwa–Etinan–Ikot Ubo Road, was awarded in March 2023 by the Federal Ministry of Works to Nakiz Integrated Services Ltd.

The contractor allegedly claimed that “the project had been completed, certified, and signed off by the supervising agency, with a certificate of completion issued.”

However, during a field verification visit on 17 April 2024, MonITNG’s Tracka team discovered that “no repair work had been carried out at all.”

MonITNG’s Tracka team added that the bridge remains in a “deplorable state, collapsed, unsafe, and abandoned.”

Residents of the community told MonITNG’s Tracka team that the bridge has been in this condition for over 10 years, severely affecting their livelihoods, trade, and access to nearby markets and communities.

“Despite the huge amount released, the site shows no trace of implementation, and no single improvement has been made,” MonITNG stated.

Despite being declared completed, the same bridge project has reportedly resurfaced in subsequent national budgets under new codes and titles.

In the 2024 budget, the project resurfaced as a “new project” with the code ERGP12209234, under the same ministry and agency, with a fresh allocation of ₦10,250,000, despite its supposed completion in 2023.

According to MonITNG’s investigation, in the 2025 budget, the same project appeared yet again with another code—ERGP12230591, titled “Special Repairs of Ekparakwa–Etinan–Ndiya–Ikot Ubo Road,” with ₦75 million allocated to the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA) under the Federal Ministry of Works.

“This pattern of recycled budgeting, false completion claims, and lack of accountability is a disturbing example of how public resources are siphoned away while citizens are left to suffer the consequences of abandoned projects.”

MonITNG has urged the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), and the Federal Ministry of Works to immediately investigate the contractor, Nakiz Integrated Services Ltd, and supervising officials responsible.

“They must provide proof of where this project was allegedly completed, as claimed in the official reports.”

“The absence of a functional Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E)system within key ministries and agencies allows contractors to collect payments without accountability. Proper monitoring and evaluation are vital for ensuring project quality, preventing corruption, enhancing transparency, and guaranteeing that citizens receive the benefits of government spending. Without these checks, taxpayers’ money continues to disappear into fraudulent projects that exist only on paper.”

The group also called on the Ministry of Budget and National Planning to prioritise verifying project implementation before approving new allocations.

“Every naira released must be tracked, accounted for, and tied to visible, functional infrastructure.”(Guardian)