People of Uruagu-Nnewi community in Nnewi North local government area of Anambra state, on Sunday, took to the streets to protest the dilapidated road network in the area.
The protesters, who were majorly youths and elderly men, displayed placards bearing different inscriptions depicting their annoyance over the alleged neglect of roads in the area.
Some of the placards read: “Nnewi community has suffered a lot due to bad road network;” “Gunmen attacks, kidnapping, and robbery are rampant in our community as a result of bad roads;” “Buhari, Governor Soludo, please, come to our help;” “Religious leaders and prominent people in our community should not be silent on the state of our roads;” among other things.
Leader of the protesters, Mr. Obiora Okeke, said that several roads in the area, especially the Nnewi-Oba old road, and St. John of the Cross Catholic Church axis in particular, have become a death trap that has consumed a lot of people in the past.
He said, “Several roads in Nnewi, the industrial nerve center of Anambra state, and the supposed Japan of Africa, have become ghosts of their selves. Most of the roads are dilapidated and in a state of disrepair.
“Vehicles no longer ply most of the roads in Nnewi. In rainy seasons, traders from outside Nnewi hardly come here to transact business because of bad roads. Vehicles that dare come in rainy seasons hardly go back the same way they come.
“The worst aspect is that gunmen, armed robbers, and kidnappers take advantage of bad roads in the city to unleash mayhem on members of the public, especially strangers. We’ve recorded many kidnap and robbery cases in these bad spots. The other day, a woman and two young men were halted and kidnapped in front of St. John of the Cross Catholic Church, Nnewi, because of a bad road.”
Okeke, who noted that the majority of the bad roads are federal government roads, urged concerned authorities to make necessary interventions on the said roads to avert further calamities.
Youth leader of Uruagu-Nnewi community, Ejike Ifejiofor, on his own, called on the government, church authorities and prominent people in the community to intervene on the state of roads in the area.
Another indigene of the community, Marcel Ifeachor, called on the senator representing Anambra South Senatorial District, Senator (Dr.) Patrick Ifeanyi Ubah, the member representing Nnewi North and Nnewi South federal constituency in the House of Representatives, Hon. Chris Emeka Azubogu, both indigenes of Nnewi, to attract federal presence to the roads.
He also called on people like Dr. Innocent Chukwuma (INNOSON); Dr. Cletus Ibeto of the Ibeto Group; Dr. Chika Okafor (Chikason); Dr. Chosmas Maduka (Choscharis); as well as Dr. Ajulu Uzodike (Cutix cables), among others, who are indigenes of Nnewi to do something fast about the state of roads in the community.
He says, “Any community with these calibers of men as its sons should not be complaining about bad roads.”
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