As the Igbos of the South East extraction return home for this year’s Christmas and New Year celebrations the fate of the Federal Highways in the area has come into sharp focus and Okey Maduforo reports on the feelings of travelers and the efforts of government to salvage the excruciating pains of travelers .
Journey To Hell In South East.
The old River Niger Bridge built before the Nigeria civil war cut the picture of one that is about to collapse giving the heavy load that it has always carried on daily bases.
Apprehension rises at every Christmas and New Year seasons being the gate way to both the South East and South East geopolitical zones following the state of the roads.
Heavy duty and commuter vehicles would practically sleep on top of the ancient bridge no tanks to the gridlock that would last for days along the Onitsha – Asaba highway.
Similarly from Aba- Umuahia to Ikot Ekpene roads leading to Akwa- Ibom state has been a sorry and gorry sites as vehicles would swim pass the muddy flood and rough ages of what is left of that highway built several decades ago and after such a long excruciating trip , the drivers would visit the panel beaters who smile their ways to the bank daily.
Deepening the fate of road users is also the Enugu – Okigwe- Umuahia – Abs – Port Harcourt highway which had ultimately sentenced so many vehicles off the road permanently.
Most of these roads were constructed during the second Republic under late President Shehu Shagari and few under the first republic and had remained in several levels of disrepair hence worsening the fate of motorists and commuters .
At the inception of the then President Mohammadu Buhari administration, efforts were made to save the situation which resulted in the completion of of the second Niger Bridge embarked upon by the then President Good luck Jonathan administration but was as it where reddiled in so much controversies over the cost , size and design of the project.
Similarly the Enugu – Okigwe- Umuahia – Aba- Pot Harcourt road was visited and work started on that long stretch of the road but could not be completed .
Same had been the fate of roads such as the Lopka- Enugu and Abakaliki – Afikpo highways while the Onitsha -Awka – Enugu road had commuters face that hash gravel pains of dilapidation.
Successive administrations in the country had in the time past used those roads as a campaign mantra that ended up at those venues of those rallies with not much effort made to save the situation as it where.
The Coming Sigh Of Relieve .
The 2025 Christmas and New Year celebrations were yet another season of fear and trepidations for the people of the South East and South South as the nightmares of bad roads came calling.
When this reporter attended few workshops across the South East, there appeared a pictorial of relief for the people of the area as the heavy duty machines were at all those places pulling all stops to save them from yet another season of anxieties.
According to commuter drivers who spoke with him ; “I think this year is far better than last year and this part of the road was hell on earth, but we have so far enjoyed very smooth passage through those passions against the case before” Mr Obed Chidebere said .
Roland Anietie a driver with the Eastern Mass Transit Company narrated that ;
“The fear of not going to Ikot Ekpene is the beginning of the survival of your buses ,but today it is a different experience and that is what we expect government to do for us and nothing else”
A Medical practitioner based in Rivers State Dr William Chiejina who visits some specialist private hospitals at Port Harcourt and Yenegua Capital of Bayelsa state could not hide his joy when he spoke to this reporter.
“I the past one year or there about I have never used my private car to go to work rather I use public transport ”
“But since August this year I have been using my car and though the roads have not been fully completed, I can manage it and come home without visiting the auto mechanic” he said.
At a recent project tour of Federal Highways in the area the Minister for Works Engr Dave Umahi announced that approximately N1. 5 Trillion road projects have been on going in those areas adding that so far most of the roads are at the advanced phases of completion.
According to Umahi, roads such as Enugu – Pot Harcourt Express way which is Aba – Umuahia road of 56 km has about 48 km of Aba – Ikot Ekpene road to Akwa- Ibom at advanced stages .
Similarly the Enugu – Onitsha Express way has been completed through the tax credits of the MTN communication company as well as the second Niger Bridge access road of 17. 5 km dualiztion at the Anambra section of the road with a flyover.
Also the Lopka- Enugu road which is about 6.1 km is being dualized including the Abakaliki – Afikpo flyover in Ebony state.
Currently the other lane of Awka – Amansea express way is being rehabilitated for free flow of traffic from the Arroma junction to the boundary of Anambra and Enugu state.
Apparently it is not in doubt that this year’s Christmas and New Year seasons have so far witnessed great relief for road users while motorists and inhabitants of those areas express hopes that next year it would be a farewell to bad roads in the South East
