… Urges Govt To Subsidize Facility For Civil Servants
By Nsidibe AKPAN
Principal partner of Novone Consult, Arc. Ezekiel Nya-Etok, has outlined the unique features of the Novone Social Housing Estate, located at Ikot Ntuen Nsit, along Olusegun Obasanjo Way, Uyo.
The Housing Estate is a Public Private Partnership (PPP) project that is facilitated by the Federal Government of Nigeria through Federal Ministry of Works and Housing and Novone Consult.
In a media chat with journalists on Saturday at the Estate’s Press Centre, Arc. Nya-Etok, progenitor of Social Governance Ideology (SGI), stated that Novone Social Housing Estate “comes with full infrastructure which is aided by the federal government of Nigeria. The facilities in the Estate include Roads, Water Reticulation, Industrial Boreholes, Water Treatment Plant, Security, Electricity, Fire Hydrants and other amenities aimed at making life comfortable for residents.”
Explaining further, he said “I am happy today to say that all the Roads in the Estate have been completely asphalted, this is not a promise, it is a reality on the ground. The entire estate, both phase one and subsequent phases, have been completely covered with water reticulation. We do not only have water reticulation; we do also have Overhead Tanks for three floors because subsequent phases will not be bungalows. We have also put these facilities for the future.”
“We have an Industrial Borehole, something you cannot find in any other estates in Akwa Ibom. We have installed a Water Treatment Plant, a 25KVA Generator and Street Lights. We are also adding paves to the Roads. Apart from that, we already have four Fire Hydrants. We are talking about the safest possible Estate in the State. Two transformers have already been installed with cable lines running. All the basic infrastructures and those that do not necessarily have to be are on the ground,” he maintained.
While noting that Social Housing is not a cheap Housing Estate, Arc. Nya-Etok said he is in the business to make a profit and to help poor people in the state breach the gap between the rich.
He used the opportunity to appeal to the Akwa Ibom State Government to subsidize the houses for civil servants in the state.
In his words: “This Estate is different from a standard government project. It is a Public-Private Partnership (PPP). The government provides the land and infrastructure, I am building these houses with my own money without getting a dime from the government, so I have to make a profit because it is an investment. We call on the state government to come in and help workers get houses of their own.”
“This Estate is the most primed Housing Estate in Akwa Ibom State. In real estate, we consider the location and infrastructure before any other thing. By way of location, this Estate is very central compared to Ewet Housing and Shelter Afrique, immediately after the completion of the flyover at Ekom Iman junction constructed by the State Government, you can easily travel from here to Calabar, Port Harcourt, Aba, Ikot Ekpene, Abak, Eket, Ikot Abasi, Etinan and other places without having to pass through the stress of beating traffic in the city. This estate is a walking distance from the University of Uyo Teaching Hospital (UUTH), even the Federal and State Secretariats. It is closer to the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium whereby you can sit down at home and listen to commentaries from the stadium,” he said.
Speaking further, Arc. Nya-Etok, who has been pioneering ideological politics in Nigeria through social governance, said “In terms of infrastructure, it is going to be a gated estate. Before you enter the estate, you must be cleared at the gate by security personnel, if you are not cleared, you cannot come inside. These are the things we find in Lagos and Abuja and we are going to have it here. The Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) had promised to provide solar in every apartment and other infrastructures.”
“This is an investment estate; we want to make sure that any civil servant from level 0 – 10 can own a house here. We want to breach that gap between the poor and rich because the rich can influence the poor and that can only help a poor man to develop and change his mentality. This project was earmarked for commissioning last November, but that plan was not fruitful because the roads were not constructed. With the roads and other facilities now ready, we are looking at this Easter for commissioning, and God’s willing, we should be able to achieve that. By next week, people will start living in the estate. This shows the level that we are. We need people to start buying so that we can move to the next phase of this project,” he concluded.
The highpoint of the briefing was an unscheduled visit and inspection of the facilities at the Estate by the Senior Pastor of Full Life Christian Centre, Rev. Ntia I. Ntia, who also prayed God to guide and bless Arc. Nya-Etok.
