Socio-economic activities along Benin-Sapele road were, on Monday morning, disrupted following protests by residents over the perennial deplorable condition of the road.
It was gathered that the entrance and exit points of the Benin-Sapele road were blocked by the protesters, resulting in gridlock.
A long queue of articulated trucks and cars line the length and breadth of the dilapidating road that serves Edo, Delta, Bayelsa, Rivers and other South-South oil-producing states.
Some motorists and residents, who ply the road on daily basis, vowed to remain on the road until the road is fixed.
The Benin/Sapele road has been in a parlous state for a long time.
It will be recalled that last year, it took the intervention of the Edo State governor, Mr Godwin Obaseki, to pacify protesters, mainly youths who had occupied the road to register their displeasure over the harrowing experience commuters go through on a daily basis.
The youths had set up canopies and giant tripod stands, cooking, eating and dancing to music from a standby disk jockey (DJ).
The protesters however left the road following assurances from Obaseki that the road was going to get the needed attention with a promise to mobilize contractors to the site.
Palliative work commenced on the road the following day with contractors moving in heavy-duty equipment to the site and some repairs carried out but the road now seems to have been abandoned with the ongoing rainy season.
One of the Monday protesters, Raymond Eshebugan, who addressed journalists, said “we’re tired. Last year (November precisely), we came out, we protested, the governor came out, he addressed us, he accused the Federal Government of playing politics with the road.
“The governor, after making promises, after 24 hours, he really deployed contractors to this road. We applauded the governor for that.
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“But four days along the line, the controller, Federal Ministry of Works at Aduwawa, the man came with military men and police and stopped the contractors working on the road, saying the road was a Federal Government road that the state government had no right to construct the road or whatsoever.
“That was November last year, behold this is August 1st, 2022 and nothing has been done.
“The road is no longer motorable. If our kids are going to school in the morning, they spend two hours or three hours on the road, if they are coming back, they spend three hours as the case may be.
“This road leads to other four Niger Delta roads. It has a lot of economic value to both the state and the Federal Government.
“If they are claiming that they are broke, they can give tax waiver to the oil companies.
“We have about six to seven oil companies here; we have Seplat Energy, Summit, Panocean, even NPDC.
“The best gas in the world is from this place, yet they are doing this to us despite the huge revenue the Federal Government gets from here.
“We have resolved to be here until they do something. We don’t want rehabilitation, we want a standard road, if they want to bring RCC, let them bring it.
“We want a standard road, this road is due for expansion.”
Another protester, who expressed his frustrations, said, “all we’re asking is for the road to be expanded. We have written several letters, yet nothing. Over 300 heavily loaded trucks ply this road on a daily basis.
“Its an eyesore; this is a state that the Federal Government is getting a lot from. What are we not saying? Federal Government has actually neglected the road.
“The vehicular movement on this road is high. We have vehicles moving in and out of the Niger Delta states up to the East-West road and even to the Bakassi Pennisula.
“We’re not asking for just roads, we’re asking for durable roads with quality asphalt and bitumen of high quality, roads that can last up to 50 years or so.”
Meanwhile, as of the time of filing the report, no official from the Federal Road Maintenance Agency (FERMA) or any other government functionary had addressed the protesters.
Scores of law enforcement agents were however sighted at the protest ground.
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