Samuel Oyadongha
11 January 2009
opinion
WHEN the military administration of former head of state, Gen. Yakubu Gowon conceived the idea of an East-West road it was considered on herculean task in some quarters given the swampy and riverine terrain it was expected to crisscross.
However, there was a ray of hope when construction work actually started on the road straddling what is today known as the states of the Niger Delta region. The joy of the communities the road passes through was really electrifying in the late seventies when those of them in big cities such as Lagos in the western part of the country could travel home in vehicles as against boat.
These communities not only witnessed rapid economic boom but many developed into modern cities because of their strategic location along the East-West road. Though this road spanning the modern state of Edo, Delta, Bayelsa, Rivers and Akwa Ibom was opened for traffic in the late seventies it was not until 1983 that the connecting bridges were ready for effective movement bringing to an end the use of boats to ferry commuters across the several rivers and creeks crisscrossing the route as commuters could now travel all the way from Benin in the defunct Bendel to Rivers State and the then old Cross River State on the newly constructed asphalt route. In spite of the jubilation that greeted the completion of the road it was not officially commissioned by the Federal Government before it was put into public use.
Though a Trunk A road, it was then regarded as the best in the federation given it newness and its breathtaking surrounding rain forest vegetation and sparkling rivers dotting the route making a journey through the East-West road a luxury trip. However, almost thirty years after, the road which was then not only the pride of the region but the Nigerian federation given its geographical location could today be described as a 'national shame' as it has continued to claim the lives of innocent road users and some of the best brains in the country due to its deplorable state.
Sunday Vanguard investigation revealed that the only major rehabilitation on the road was done by Reynolds Construction Company between 1991 and 1992 when the Patani-Mbiama axis of the road was virtually cut off by erosion.
Although contract for the dualisation of the ailing route has since been awarded by the Federal Government to construction giant, Julius Berger but the upsurge in youth militancy stalled the execution of the job prompting the Niger Delta Development Commission and FERMA to have at one time or the other embark on rehabilitation of the failed portion of the road so as to prevent it from being cut off from the rest of the country.
Given the marshy deltaic nature of the terrain, Sunday Vanguard learnt that Julius Berger was recommended ahead of other construction companies by then governors of Rivers and Bayelsa states to handle the Bayelsa-Port Harcourt stretch starting from Kaiama in the Kolokuma-Opokuma council area of Bayelsa to Eleme in the outskirts of Port Harcourt in Rivers because of the company's expertise and vast knowledge of the deltaic terrain while Setraco was awarded the contract to handle the Warri in Delta-Kaiama stretch in Bayelsa.
But the German firm pulled out of the project site citing insecurity following the abduction of two its expatriate staff by gunmen at Rumuji in Rivers State and all entreaties to the firm to return to site from concerned indigenes of the region has been rebuffed. Sadly, the East-West highway is today in a very bad condition with gullies and ditches adorning the entire stretch of the road especially between the Ughelli-Port Harcourt axis of the road.
As a result, traffic flow on the highway is very unsafe. A ride through the road especially during the rainy season when it is at its worst state takes about five and six hours from Warri to Rivers on a very bad day as against two and half hours.
But for the pockets of craters dotting the Patani-Odi stretch of the road this portion of the route could be described as manageable compared to the Kaiama-Ahaoda-Rumuoji-Emohua stretch of the road which is now a death trap for unsuspecting road users. At the peak of the rainy season drivers plying the route are forced to make several detours through adjoining communities along the road due to the several ditches and deep gullies that sometimes cut off the road
two kilometers away from the fast deteriorating Kaiama bridge lies a small dangerous gangly bridge that constitute big risk to road users. The bridge has almost broken into halves and is on the verge of collapse due to the push of the Okosu river which is fast eating into the side of the East-West road causing one of the worst erosion on the route in recent times.
As it is, travellers' moment of relief comes only when they have crossed the bridge that is now a death trap tarrying for some unlucky souls to claim. Some couple of years, the bridge almost caved in before the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) came to the rescue by contracting Julius Berger to rehabilitate the ailing structure.
Today, the condition of the bridge has deteriorated beyond what it was two years ago before the NDDC took up the challenge to save it from total collapse as its flat surface is gradually giving way to a 'v' shape at the middle which could spell doom for any unsuspecting driver especially during the wet season when the surface is covered with water after heavy downpour. A Warri bound passenger bus coming from Port Harcourt was not that lucky about three years ago when it plunged into the river killing all eighteen persons on board.
At other times, commuters plying the route during the peak of the rainy season are stranded for hours as a result of broke down of vehicles on the only accessible portion of the road. In situation like this, drivers are often compelled to bring their driving skill to play battling to navigate through the marshy and tricky spots as both sides of the road are not accessible due to its swampy and valley nature.
There are instances where travellers, including women and children, using public transport were compelled to abandon such vehicles and trek long distances away from the failed portions to continue their journey while drivers are forced to exchange passengers with vehicles coming from the opposite direction.
This category of travellers are sometimes subjected to intimidation by some youths who posed as good Samaritans only to dispossessed their unsuspecting car owners and their passengers of their valuables like mobile phones while others had their car stereo stolen by hoodlums. The sight of several broken down vehicles on the road and on the side of the road as well as others that plunged into the deep surrounding valley on some section of the East-West road is a sad commentary of the sorry state of this all important route.
Ironically, it reported that a whopping N300bn was released by the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo to fix the nation decaying infrastructure but what happened? The road had gone from bad to worst and has continued to claim the lives of some of the nation best brains.
Interestingly, the appointment of Mrs. Diezani Allison-Madueke as the transport minister fired the expectation of the people especially those from the Niger Delta region that since she is one of their own the problem of the East-West road would be fixed in a record time given her show of emotion on the Lagos Benin express road. But alas, several months after, those that ply the route on regular basis would attest to the fact that traveling through the route is quite nightmarish especially for a first time visitor to the region.
"The sad thing is that we have political leaders who have travelled far and wide but are not interested in ameliorating the pains of commuters on this important but fast decaying structure. Some of our leaders who could have pushed for the speedy rehabilitation of the road have devised the means of using helicopters to get to their destinations without going through the harrowing experience of navigating this potholes riddled road like other hapless Nigerians," lamented Jones Abiri, a
businessman cum publisher.
Another concerned stakeholder, Surveyor Furoebi Sheba Akene who spoke to Sunday Vanguard on the state of the road said, "Is it that our leaders who travel others countries not as endowed as ours don't see how roads are maintained in such countries? When will they develop humane feelings that are very much needed in governance? When will they realize that the masses have the right to good roads and other services? How much will it cost the federal government to repair and maintain the East-West road given its strategic significance to the country's vast oil and gas industry operating in the region?" Akene, who is also the director of Centre for Environment Preservation added, "The East-West is a national shame that should prick the consciousness of the Nigerian state. How can the federal government allow a road that is strategic to the nation economy to degenerate to the level that it is today a death trap to its own citizens?
The excuse of militants stalling the dualisation of the road is uncalled for in the sense that the oil companies operating in the region in spite of the upsurge in hostage taking are still doing business in the area. And they are equally constructing solid roads to their facilities in the same region Julius Berger has deliberately refused to mobilize to site. Since the road is to the benefit of our people I believe it is another ploy by the federal government and the construction company to stall development in the region under the guise that militants are disturbing them from developing the region."
"It appears the Federal Government is playing politics with the dualisation of the road. How can Julius Berger be holding the entire region to ransom under the pretext of insecurity?"
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