Thursday 3 October 2013

A Dead Zone


PORT-HARCOURT/OWERRI ROAD
The importance of road networks cannot be over flogged. Before the advent of civilization, our forbears had great challenge moving between states. They trekked long distances to sell their farm produce or to visit a loved one. This ache became part of our history with the advent of motorable road networks. This roads link communities, states and neighbouring countries, but when a road supposedly designed to cater for the transportation need of the people becomes a death trap, it leaves absolutely nothing to be desired.


The Port-Harcourt/Owerri road is one important road network in the eastern part of Nigeria. It links states like Anambra, Abia, Enugu, Imo and Port- Harcourt. This road makes it easier for the transportation of agricultural, commercial and industrial products between the states but the Umuapu-Omalelu end of the road is a flavoursome recipe for chaos.
It was a complete echo of hullabaloo in this thickly deplorable portion of the road as motorists meandered like snakes in a maze amidst shouting, cussing and gritting of teeth just to escape from getting rooted in the mud. The passengers were jostled from one position of their seat to another as the drivers swiveled their cars. Can a pregnant woman survive the drive in this road without hurting the foetus?

This road has worn out so bad over time that it now poses grave danger to Nigerians using it.
To say that most roads in the country today are in a horrendous state is an understatement. The Umuapu-Omalelu end of the Port-Harcourt/Owerri road is one out of the numerous dead zones in this country bearing the name road. Some of them have deplored to the extent that they have been rendered impassable. The Benin-Ore road slaughtered many Nigerians at their prime before those we entrusted the onus of leading us realized that enough lives have been wasted already. Well, thanks but no thanks.

The repair of this road has commenced and we pray it does not follow the part of uncompleted projects in the country.

A native of this community, Mr. Chukwudi Ejike who spoke in confidence said:  “The government of today like sleeping until situations gets out of hand that’s when they wake up. It is not supposed to be so. This road started spoiling little by little with potholes and today look at it.” He said with anger simmering through his heart. When this road started deteriorating I am sure the government and other relevant authorities saw it and instead of bailing the water before it got this deep they turned their eyes in the other direction and today so much will be needed to bring this road back to normal.
The federal government is in charge of roads between states hence they are called federal roads.


Nigeria is a nation blessed with numerous human and natural resources but something seems to be eroding our worth. It wouldn’t be much of a tussle to stop to ask what this is. Would it? The government seem to be sitting on their hands while situations take a down-ward slide. The basic amenities needed by the people are not provided. They have lost touch with the very people that elected them in office. A people oriented government will not allow this to happen. It would ensure that the populace do not suffer unwarranted bloodshed and discomfort on the roads. It will not go to sleep when his people are wallowing in abject pain and misery on the road.

When you tune in your radio or television or even flip through the pages of newspapers you will marvel at the myriads of contracted roads and other projects you will see but sometimes some of this projects especially the roads are a big sham. They are mere templates designed to deceive the people. They are either not under construction or they are being abandoned and it beats down every nerve of imagination in me on the reason behind this monkey game. Why should a government sight a project that does not exist? Who is deceiving who?

Road accidents have become a citizen of our dear country. It has become the major cause of death in the country today and the deaths are usually of the active members of the society. The countless potholes and nauseating detours that decorate the roads today are the architects of many accidents often encountered on the roads. Most of the high ways across the country have gradually become dead zones for many travelers. Some are turned into comfortable havens for criminal elements. A respondent who simply gave her name as Nkechi said: “Apart from accident, this road na very bad spot for night as thieves no need to stop you before dem rob you. We dey beg our government to do something about am abeg.”  A motorist who didn’t want his name on print said: “Apart from the damage posed by this spot, it gives hoodlums the leverage to perpetrate evil at night freely.’’

The government has to do more than just award contracts. Concerted efforts should be made to ensure the implementation of every aspect of each contract, ranging from the duration of the project to the quality of the materials to be used, the quality of the road to be constructed and how it should be maintained over time to avoid unnecessary breakdown.

The constant flooding of roads across the federation during rainy season exposes the unwholesome deals of some contractors. A situation where a road is flooded during a rain leaves nothing to be desired. Whether you chose to accept it or not, this gradually deteriorates the road and takes back to where we started from. Contracts should be awarded to ready and competent hands and not to cronies who know little or nothing about road construction.
Maintenance culture has been our major problem in all aspect of our life as a nation and not just on road construction. Successive governments neglect the uncompleted or finished project of the previous administration for reasons I cannot possibly fathom. This sad scenario has now turned many Nigeria roads into scary nightmare. Many government officials have, on different strategic occasions decried the nature of some of the Nigerian roads but their lamentation which is supposed to transcend into action become mere talk shows and emotional dramas immediately as soon as they enter their Eldorado. After all, the private jets and the air planes are good substitutes for road travel and the common man who may not afford air travel is left to grapple with this tragedy. 


The government should wake up to their responsibilities; The Ministry of works, Ministry of Transportation, Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA), Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) and Vehicle Inspection Office (VIO) should step up on their responsibilities. They should spread their watch-lights to the Umuapu-Omalelu end of the Port/Harcourt-Owerri road and to other dilapidated roads in the federation. Over-loaded vehicles should be intercepted and their drivers thoroughly penalized to serve as deterrent to others. The Federal Ministry of Works should sanction any of its contractors who engage in shoddy road construction. Substandard contractors and materials should be thoroughly shown the door. We don’t need them.

The government should imbibe the culture of proper maintenance so that we wouldn’t wait for the road to get so bad before giving them attention. We needn’t lose lives to bad roads every day. Off course we need not. We must attach enough value to human lives.

The Nation national daily reported in September 11 that 23 people were killed when their vehicle plunged into a collapsed bridge at Yar’randa village in Charanchi local Government Area of Katsina State. I was drawn to tears when I stumbled into this report.


The victims didn’t deserve to die. In-as-much-as I don’t intend to absolve the driver of the vehicle of any blame, this accident should have been aborted if the relevant ministries or agencies had raised alert on the dangers inherent in the road before hand but they went to bed and the result was the flow of innocent bloods.

We should be ready to protect human life because when it is lost that is the end?  Therefore, it is better to prevent road accident rather than lament when it finally occurs and claim lives. Concomitant loss of lives and economic wastage of this kind should be avoided because they are avoidable.

We as citizens have a stake in this.
The unwholesome dumping of refuse in drainage is an unwholesome attitude perpetrated by some people. This is often seen when rainfall is at its peak. The debris accumulates in drainage and hampers the free flow of the water, thus they are channeled to our roads and this in turn erodes the little worth the road is left with. How about those that throw banana peel on the road. They too are guilty of this crime. The habit of throwing empty cans of drinks and sachets of biscuits or cakes off a vehicle’s window on the roads leaves nothing at all to be desired. Every commercial vehicle should have a bin or baskets where passengers on board can easily dispose their leftovers and when this waste bins are not provided, passengers should as well drop the waste on the floor of the vehicle. The driver will pick them up later and put them where they ought to be. This is a culture of indiscipline that has developed a taproot in our society and we must end it.

The Umuapu-Omalelu end of the Port-Harcourt/Owerri road is in a sorry state and the government should do something about it.




























 

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