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People of Amuokpokpor-Elume community in Sapele Local Government Area of Delta State have appealed to the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) to rehabilitate the only road connecting the mainly agrarian community to other parts of the local government area.
The community lamented that the road had practically collapsed barely one year after the contractor reportedly completed it, noting that the deplorable condition of the road has caused incalculable harm, including loss of lives as well as valuable property and the crippling of economic activities in the area.
Mr. Daniel Ogbodo, the community chairman, told journalists that the contractor obviously used substandard materials in executing the project, which started in 2020, as evidenced by the failure of the road only one year after its completion.
The excitement the people felt at the commencement of the project has since disappeared following the nightmarish experience engendered by the failed road.
He said that the community was left with no other choice but to cry out for help as the road now constitutes a death trap for both the people of Amuokpokpor-Elume and visitors, “because the poorly drained road is riddled with heaps of loose stones and exposed iron rods used for the construction of the road, a situation worsened by lack of any drainage.”
Ogbodo said: “At the project’s inception, the community was filled with jubilation, knowing the struggles residents had faced with poor road conditions for years. However, we were surprised that the newly constructed, concrete-paved road did not last a year before deteriorating, leaving the community in a worse state than before the contractor’s intervention.”
In the same vein, a community elder, Mr. Olu Majelele, and Felix Emuobonuvie, who is the president-general of Elume District, urged the NDDC to revisit the site and construct a good and enduring road to save the people from the untold hardship they presently facedue to the deplorable condition of the road.
Frequent crashes and increased cost of transportation because transporters are avoiding the route owing to the poor condition of the road were among the challenges being encountered by the community, they said.
“Currently, the Amuokpokpor road is almost impassable because the rods and other metal objects used in its construction have resurfaced. This has resulted in frequent bursting of tyres of motorcycles and vehicles. So, no one wants to ride their motorcycle or drive their vehicle into the community for fear of punctured tyres.
“In the recent past, this road has been the site of a heartbreaking incident that led to the loss of one of our sons, whose vehicle overturned, resulting in his instantaneous death.
“A visual inspection of the road, whose construction work started less than five years ago, also reveals the existence of numerous potholes and loose stones that hinder safe vehicular movement. We humbly request that the NDDC deploy its site engineers to inspect the road and provide support to the Amuokpokpor-Elume community, as this road serves as the community’s sole access route,” Majelele and Emuobonuvie stated.
Speaking on behalf of women in the community, Mrs. Mercy Izobo and Mrs. Bridget Emuobonuvie recounted the difficulties they experienced daily in conveying their goods to the market.
According to them, the men and women of Amuokpokpor are generally engaged in various agricultural activities, including growing crops like cassava, plantains, yams, as well as rubber, timber, palm oil,, and fishery and snails, but taking these produce and finished products to the market hasbecome a big headache “due to the prohibitive transportation costs.
“These days, drivers demand a hundred percent fare increase, attributing it to the bad road condition, leading to abandonment of much farm produce at home to eventually suffer unavoidable spoilage,” Izobo said regretfully.
Nonetheless, other respondents, including John Otuma, Samuel Izobo, Comedy Ogbodo, Richard Edi, commended the NDDC for initiating the road project for the Amuokpokpor-Elume community, but appealed for the commission to remedy the situation, and transform the community landscape to boost economic activities in the area.
Moreover, they appealed to the NDDC to extend the road project to the riverbank, including a jetty and drainage system, to safeguard the riverside agrarian community against flooding resulting from heavy downpour and occasional riverbank landslides.
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