The Abavo community in Delta State’s Ika South Local Government Area has expressed deep concern over the abandonment of the Agbor-Amukpe road dualisation project, which has been left to decay for over 10 years.
Addressing a press conference on Friday at Abavo, the President-General of Abavo Clan Union, Justine Onyeibe, said that neglect of the project, had turned the highway into a haven for kidnappers, making it a perilous route for commuters and crippling economic life in the region.
Onyeibe said that the contract for the project, was awarded in two sections in 2014, with Messrs CCECC handling the Agbor–Amukpe stretch.
According to him, while contractors were mobilised between 2015 and 2016, work has long been abandoned.
He also said that state of disrepair has created a security nightmare, providing cover for kidnappers and other malefactors.
The community leader further lamented that the highway’s collapse has worsened insecurity, turning commuters into “sitting ducks for ambush, adding that the neglect of the road has also had a devastating economic impact on the community.
”Agricultural produce such as yam, cassava, plantain, and tomatoes rot in heaps by the roadside because farmers cannot reach distant markets.
”This has led to significant economic losses and hardship for the people of Abavo.
Onyeibe therefore appealed to the Federal Government to intervene and complete the abandoned project.
He described the road’s dualisation as “a covenant with the people” and a “promise of prosperity, growth, and development” for Abavo.
The community leader noted that completing the project would
to reduce the cost of transportation, making it easier for farmers to get their produce to market.
Onyeibe also called on the media to act as watchdogs and amplifiers of the community’s struggle, ensuring that the abandoned road is finally completed.
By highlighting the plight of the Abavo community, the media can help bring attention to the issue and prompt government action.
