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Chetanne Chinelo, Enugu

Following weather signs showing that the rains would soon return, the people of Enugu resident in Agbani Road have called on the State government to quickly fix the innumerable potholes defacing their roads.

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While taking questions from our correspondent, a Resident, Mrs. Deb Agbo lamented the travails she and other residents have to go through almost every day.

“On behalf of others that reside in Agbani Road, I humbly appeal to the Enugu State Governor to repair Agbani Road leading to Mayor market and Amechi bus stop. The poor road has posed crucial difficulty to residents, traders in the market and motorists who encounter traffic congestion all the time.

“Some months ago, I read a circular where the government made a promise to repair the main road as soon as the last rainy season came to an end. Now the dry season is fast coming to an end and we are about to enter another rainy season, yet no changes have been made to the road. We will be very grateful if the Governor rehabilitates this road as it will make for easy access to the Mayor market and other roads connecting to it” she said.

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In that same vein, another resident who chose to speak on the condition of anonymity noted what he called a carefree attitude towards the Agbani Road axis.

“Some time in 2017 or 2018, a lot of roads were bad in Enugu and I recall that the government made attempts to fix those potholes. My worry was that Agbani Road was among the last batch fixed and it didn’t take long for the holes to reappear, showing that whatever was done was done hurriedly.

“Again, on 31st May, 2020, Gburugburu directed that roads and traffic lights be fixed. Something was done in GRA, Independence Layout, parts of New Layout which saw to the bumps installed around Peaceland College. When I had hopes that it would get to Agbani Road, the government suspended it again.”

Asked if he didn’t think that the roads were suspended for a good reason, he said the reason no longer mattered at this point because Agbani Road needed to be treated as a part of Enugu and not some neglected rural community.

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The last person who spoke to our correspondent was an old man, Elder David Akpata. He believed that Agbani Road was a reflection of what he called the state of Enugu.

“What it seems like this government has forgotten is that Agbani Road stretches from Coal Camp, through Mayor, down to Gariki and I can confidently tell you that this long stretch of road is a death trap. Worse still, adjourning streets which would have served as a bypass to Agbani Road from Eso bus stop is a nightmare.

“Go to Emeka Ebila street down to Mount and you would pity drivers. The other axis of Achara Layout is so terrible that somewhere along Igbariam, the slabs have been damaged and not even the local government has fixed them. They say our Governor fixes rural roads so let him do same to these roads. Is it because most of these big politicians don’t live around here?”, he queried.

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It would be recalled that on July 9, 2020, the State Commissioner for Works, Engr. Greg Nnaji, released a circular announcing the suspension of remedial works on repairs of potholes in the state due to frequent rainfalls during the asphalt paving operations and preparatory works.

He said “We therefore appeal to general public, good people of Enugu State and motorists to exercise patience as works on repairs of potholes will recommence as soon as rain recedes….”