Anambra Communities Demand Quality as Soludo Takes Over E-Money’s Road Project
From Francis Okoye
Residents of Umuaku and Eziama Uli in the Ihiala Local Government Area of Anambra State have called on Governor Charles Chukwuma Soludo to ensure his administration delivers high-quality work on the Umuaku-Eziama Uli road.
The project was recently taken over by the state government from the management of billionaire philanthropist, E-Money.
The Umuaku-Eziama Uli road had been neglected for years. Seasonal erosion and severe dilapidation eventually forced motorists to desert the route, stifling economic activities and the movement of goods between the area and the rest of the state.
In the past, this road served as a vital alternative for travelers on the busy Onitsha-Owerri Expressway, allowing motorists to bypass traffic gridlocks in the Ihiala axis.
However, after years of neglect by successive administrations, the communities had nearly lost hope that the road would ever be fixed.
Hope returned when two prominent sons of Uli—Emeka Okonkwo (E-Money) and his brother, Kingsley Okonkwo (Kcee)—began intervening in local infrastructure.
The duo recently completed a 3.4km road equipped with streetlights and a health center in their home community of Amamputu Uli.
Following that success, they moved contractors to the Umuaku-Eziama Uli road to begin construction.
Work was underway until it was abruptly halted by agents of Governor Soludo.
The Transition Committee Chairman of Ihiala LGA, Anayo Orjiakor, declared that the state government had officially taken over the project.
The sudden intervention sparked concern among locals who questioned why the government would stop a philanthropic gesture that saved public funds.
Ogbuehi Eziafa Onyekakusi, a youth leader from Eziama Uli, urged the Governor and the LG Chairman to ensure the road is completed quickly and to the highest standards.
Onyekakusi emphasised that the community remains wary of the project being abandoned once again.
In a statement shared via social media, he noted: “This was a road that was abandoned for years with trees growing on it. Now that our brothers, E-Money and Kcee who have embarked on rehabilitating roads in Uli as they did to their home town Amamputu, moved to rehabilitate the road, the State government stopped the work declaring that they have taken over the rehabilitation.”
He continued: “We are not against the Anambra State government taking over the road rehabilitation project already embarked upon by E-Money and K-Cee. But we demand for a standard work that will replicate the type constructed by E-Money and his brother Kcee in Amamputu which has all facilities including streetlights. Anything short of this will not be acceptable to our people.”
Meanwhile, during the official flag-off ceremony for the road, the Ihiala LG Chairman, Mr. Anayo Orjiakor, defended the state’s move.
He described Governor Soludo as a “Solution Governor” who does not abandon projects.
Orjiakor explained that the road is being constructed under a Private-Public-Community Partnership (PPCP) between the local and state government.
He highlighted the road’s ecological sensitivity, noting it requires more than just basic grading.
“Government will construct this road to a standard. Last Sunday we heard that one of our brothers, Chief E-Money said he wants to rehabilitate the road. If anyone has money, such person can support government in the work it is doing for the people. We all knew when the ministry of works came and inspected this road,” Orjiakor said.
He further addressed the confusion surrounding the project’s timeline:
“I am surprised that people are not guiding our brothers who are not at home about this road. In 2025, the ministry of ecology came and inspected this road with a promise to rehabilitate it. I have heard what people are saying about this road and that is the reason I came to make this address. I want the people to know that the major contractor constructing this road is the government. We should support the government for the development of the communities.”
