…As Calls Mount On FG To Take Responsibility
As this year’s rains continue amid warning of flash floods by relevant agencies, residents of Obigbo local government area and its environs have made a passionate appeal to the state and local government authorities to urgently fix the deteriorating central and internal roads which have continued to make businesses and life generally difficult for the people. But the Chairman of the local government, Gerald Oforji has insisted that the federal government is to take responsibility for the damaged roads.
Commenting on the road conditions in the area, one of the youth leaders in the area who craved anonymity stated that sometime in February, the state government had promised to fix the roads but up till now nothing had been done.
He said that youths from different communities had gathered together to meet with the chairman and appealed to him to help fix the roads and were still expecting something will be done.
But, in a reaction credited to the local government chairman over the matter in a media interview few days ago, Gerald Oforji stated that it is true that the people are suffering from the bad conditions of the roads in the area which personally affected him. He disclosed that the council lacked the resources to fix the roads, but the state government had agreed to fix the roads, saying that although the central road belongs to the federal government and should take responsibility to rehabilitate it.
Meanwhile, residents and market traders have condemned the condition of the major and internal roads in the area. The traders were unanimous in their appeal for urgent rehabilitation of the dilapidated roads, arguing that the situation had led to lack of patronage of their businesses as customers now preferred to go through other routes to buy items. Also, some residents who decried the state of the roads said it had made life uncomfortable for them generally, with many who have vehicles now abandoned their vehicles to join commercial buses because of the bad roads. They appealed to the state government, the state house of assembly and the local government to come to their aid.
