Imo State Executive Council (EXCO), presided over by Governor Hope Uzodimma, on Wednesday, approved the sum of N500 million lifeline for the immediate revival of the Inyishi Aluminum Company, located in Ikeduru local government area of the state. The company had been in a state of inactivity for decades.
Additionally, the council approved the construction of 40 new roads as part of its massive rural area development agenda, which spans the 27 local councils across the three senatorial zones (Okigwe, Orlu, and Owerri) in the state, including the purchase of government vehicles to enhance operational efficiency.
The state Commissioner for Information, Public Orientation and Strategy, Declan Emelumba, disclosed the above while briefing journalists after the council meeting.
In the briefing witnessed by the Commissioner for Power and Electricity, Nwabueze Ogushienti; his counterparts in the Ministries of Digital Economy, Chimezie Amadi; Lands and Survey, Enyinnaya Onuegbu; Finance, Chuck Chuckmeka, and the Chief Press Secretary/Special Adviser Media to the Governor, Oguwike Nwachuku, Emelumba informed that the administration was poised to facilitate improvement of government services to the grassroots in the remotest parts of the state, with an inter-ministerial committee raised to create a blueprint for massive development in the rural areas for the purpose of creating a balanced growth a par with urban renewal programme.
Emelumba also disclosed that the council approved a 15 per cent consultancy fee for payment to Trace Wide Consult for successfully reviewing and recovering unmerited liquefied natural gas dividends and oil revenue, which took effect from January 1999 to date.
Regarding digital technology, the commissioner announced that recruitment for “Cohort 4 of the Skill-Up Imo Project” has commenced, encouraging applicants to apply through the MyImoApp, which is available free of charge.
He informed that a contract had been awarded to Imo Digital City to manage Land Information Services and the digitalisation of all land transactions, spanning the next 25 years, pointing out that “all land transactions in the State shall henceforth be cashless and online too.”
Regarding the Imo Economic and Investment Summit, scheduled to take place between 4th and 5th December, he disclosed that a committee had been formed, hinting that 13 banks, comprising sponsors and participants, would attend.
The newly reconstructed and renovated Imo Concord Hilton Hotel, he disclosed, would be open to the public before Christmas, noting that it had begun to take on a pleasant look for holidaymakers at home and in the diaspora.
Emelumba, regrettably, announced the death of the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Trade, Commerce and Investment, Dr. Daniel Ogacheke, an indigene of Kogi State, who demised occurred suddenly, disclosing that a state government delegation would both attend the burial and provide financial assistance to the family.
On the Imo State electricity project, the Commissioner for Power and Electrification, Ogushienti, informed that the ongoing upgrade of electricity transmission across the local councils of the state was underway, with the initial installation of 15 MVA transformers to enhance power supply.
