IZUOGU-OKIGWE ROAD IS A DEATH TRAP, IMPASSABLE & DEN OF KIDNAPPERS— COMMUNITY CRIES OUT
REPORTER: CHIKA EWURUM
The people of Arondizuogu in Ideato North Local Goverment Area of Imo State have called on the federal and state governments to address the deplorable condition of Arondizuogu-Okigwe road.
They made this known in a protest to convey their grievances to the stakeholders, including the contractor, who allegedly abandoned the road.
The people made the call during a peaceful protest on the Arondizuogu-Okigwe highway.
They carryied placard with different inscriptions that read “Save our Soul,” “Our people are dying,” “Government we need help,” and “Fix our road.”
Speaking with Radio Nigeria concerning the state of the road, the traditional ruler of Iheme Izuogu Autonomous Community, Eze Ndubisi-Kanu, lamented that in the past, their people would easily board a vehicle traveling to Lagos, Anambra, Abia and other nearby towns from any point of the road, a situation which he said was no no longer possible due to bad state of the road.
“This is Okigwe- Arondizogu called Uga- Oba road so dilapidated, government should come to our aid and assist us,” he begged.
Eze Kanu expressed regret that the road was done a couple of years ago but didn’t last for three months and called on the government to come to their rescue.
A legal practitioner in the community, Mr. Emeka Ezeoke, cried out that with the prevailing condition of the road, a journey of thirty minutes would now take about three hours.
He noted that the community had made efforts to reach the government through the media and had also written the contractor, who promised to visit the site, but to no avail.
Mr. Ezeoke said the road had remained impassable, especially when it rained and described one of the worst spots as a kidnapping den where criminals had a field day.
“The road has been a den for kidnappers, it has been happening everyday. You see people robbing and kiddnapping people on daily basis,” Mr. Ezeoke lamented.
A motorist, Mazi Chukwuka Okeke, frowned at the long neglect of the road by the government and other stakeholders saddled with the responsibility of maintaining the road.
“The road is virtually impassable during rainy season. This is what we experience every year, sometimes we divert to other roads which increases the distance and time,” he said bitterly.
Mazi Okeke appealed to government and other agencies to mandate the contractor in charge of the road to return to the site and do a standard work.
Another indigene of the community, Miss Adaku Dike, who lamented that the road was a death trap, making economic activities hectic and distribution of farm products from the to other parts of of the state very cumbersome.
Miss Dike appealed to stakeholders to collaborate to make roads in the area motorable and passable.
