The leadership of the House of Representatives on Tuesday mandated the joint committees on Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA) and Appropriations to capture the funding for the rehabilitation of Aguleri-Otuocha-Ezuanaku-Omor-Omasi-Adani Road, Anambra state in the 2020 Appropriation bill.
The resolution was passed sequel to the adoption of a motion sponsored by Hon. Vincent Ofumelu, who observed the road was constructed by the Administration of the late President Shehu Shagari in the early 1980’s links the agrarian communities of Ayamelum Local Government Area of Anambra state and Uzo-Uwani Local Government Area of Enugu state, “which are the food baskets of the two neighbouring states”.
In his lead debate, Hon. Ofumelu expressed concern over the continuous neglect of the road by both the Federal and the state governments, which had left it in a state of disrepair and thus turned to a safe haven for all forms of criminal activities and a source of major environmental degradation.
According to him: “The House is worried about the quantity of agricultural produce that goes to waste in the course of conveyance to the markets due to the bad road, which would have fed up to 10% of Nigerians, especially with the ban on imported food items like rice, in a bid to boost local production.
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“The House is cognizant that the vision for the creation of the Anambra/Imo River Basin Development Authority to support agricultural initiatives for increased food production for local consumption and export has been defeated due to the deplorable state of the roads in the areas.
“The House is disturbed that despite the persistent cries of residents and commuters for remedial actions on the road, nothing has been done by successive governments to ameliorate the situation, leaving the people to undergo hardships while commuting to their various destinations with the attendant resentment against the government”.
To this end, the House urged the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA) to carry out rehabilitation work on the Aguleri-Otuocha-Ezuanaku-Omor-Omasi-Adani road.
The motion was unanimously adopted when it was put into voice vote by the Deputy Speaker, Hon Idris Wase who presided over the plenary.
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