Imo: Ngor Okpala communities groan over deplorable roads
Communities in the Ngor Okpala Local Government Area of Imo State have decried the deplorable state of the roads in the area which they said was causing them untold hardship.
The deplorable roads were neglected by past administrations.
A socio-cultural organization in Ngor Okpala, known as the Ngor Okpala Renaissance League, lamenting that the challenge had also created economic and educational problems for residents of the communities.
A leader of the organization, Dr. Ibe Nwoko,
He noted how he and others had gone to pay a courtesy visit to the Chairman of Ngor Okpala Council of Traditional Rulers, but got stuck in a pool of water.
“We had to pull off our shoes and stockings to wade through the waters.
“There is no motorable road to the local government headquarters at Umuneke.
“As I speak to you now, there are no access roads in the whole of Ngor Okpala even to link other parts of the local government council, let alone the entire parts of the state.
“All the roads are death traps. Our people have been managing without good hospitals and even good schools, but this road thing is a serious headache to us.
“As it stands now, Ngor Okpala is the worst in Imo State in terms of infrastructure”, Nwoko said.
He listed the affected roads in the area to include: Ihette junction to Umuneke Road; Ulakwo – Nguru – Umuneke – Orisheze Road; Ulakwo – Nguru – Ngor – Nkwala Eziama Road; Umuohie Ukwu – Obokwe – Ogbeke Road; Umuohie Ukwu – Ohekelem – Ogbor Road; Umudim – Okporoamuma – Nkwoala Road; and Umuchie – Obokwe – Alulu Road and Eziama – Ntu – Amala Road.
Nwoko noted with disappointment that no meaningful road infrastructure has been constructed in Ngor Okpala since 1999 despite having a series of elected senators and other legislators who represented the area both at the federal and the state levels.
“We call on the Federal government to come to our aid because the state government has failed us.
“Ngor Okpala should be declared a disaster area.
“We thought that the present governor of the state, Sen. Hope Uzodimma could have been fair to the people of the area since he and his party had large followership from the local government.
“However, what we are seeing shows the contrary. It is unfortunate”, he lamented.
The report on the deplorable state of roads in Ngor Okpala Local Government as stated is very true and very appealing.
We join to appeal to the State Government to urgently intervene in the rehabilitation of these roads that is a major access road to the food basket of the state and a major arterial road connecting Rivers State and other South East into the major Federal Expressway to Owerri to the Lagos and the South West and Enugu to the Northern parts of the Country.
We equally call on the current political leaders and elected representatives of our people in the affected Communities to rise up and bring up this matter to the urgent attention of the State Governor in Owerri..