8.5km-asphalted road completed in Enugu State by Emperor Chris Baywood Ibe

Echoes of joy are still being heard in four communities in Enugu State after a businessman handed them an uncommon Christmas and New Year gift. Their illustrious sons, Emperor Chris Baywood Ibe, Chief Executive Officer, Baywood Continental Ltd, single-handedly built and handed them an 8.5km-asphalted road. The road traverses Agbogugu, Isu-Awaa, Agbudu and Ihie town, all in Agwu Local Government Area of the state. The communities are still in a celebratory mood days after the facility was commissioned by the Federal Road Maintenance Agency (FERMA).

Emperor Baywood Ibe, who maintained that the gesture was strictly a philanthropic one, had, on same day, handed over a one-storey classroom block and a remodelled church building he built for his native Isu-Awa community. The ceremonies were part of the activities he lined up to celebrate the 25th anniversary of his union with his wife, Empress Pat Baywood Ibe who was also marking her 50th birthday.

During the road commissioning ceremony, FERMA assured that it would take over the maintenance of the facility if the Enugu State government failed to do so. FERMA Chairman, Mr. Ezekiel Olajide Adeniji, an engineer, who represented President Goodluck Jonathan on the occasion, made the disclosure while cutting the tape to declare the road open. He commended Emperor Baywood Ibe for his magnanimity, maintaining that if one individual each in every state of the federation could do what the donor had done, the country would soon be blessed with an intricate road network.

“This is simply marvellous,” Mr. Adeniji noted. “It is amazing to note that one person could do this much for the good of his people. If we have one person each from every state and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja building about 8.5km road, we will soon have about 340km road network. In the whole country, we have 34, 120km of roads under the maintenance of FERMA. If everybody could emulate what Emperor Baywood Ibe has just done, it means that private individuals would be contributing one per cent to the road network under the care of the Federal government. For this reason, I wish to call on people like him to replicate his philanthropic example.

“The Enugu State government is expected to take over this facility because it is a state road. But if there is need for us in future to help, we will not hesitate to do that.”

And speaking about the quality of the road, Mr. Adeniji said: “I have been a civil engineer for more than 30 years. So, I can tell you that the quality of the road I’m seeing here is quite high. I’m particularly excited by the line drainage on the road, the bridges and the culverts. These features will help to elongate the road’s life span because there won’t be percolation of flood water anytime it rains. What that means is that the contractor did an excellent job and the technical quality is simply high.”

Emperor Chris in his speech said “What we have done is not an expression of abundance or an ego trip, but a sacrifice of love for the good of all. When we support our widows through our widows’ empowerment programme, we find happiness; when out medical outreach programme saves the lives of the downtrodden and the elderly in our rural communities, we find happiness.”