From Everest Ezihe, Owerri
The people of Ubakuru Mbieri in Mbaitoli council area of Imo State and its environ, may soon have a cause to smile as Imo State Government, (IMSG) said plans have been advanced to ensure that immediately after the rains, their ever busy ancestral exit road to other communities, Iho Dim Eze – Ubakuru Mbieri – Orie Mbieri road will soon receive a facelift.
Barr. Ralph Nwosu, the State Commissioner for Works and Rural Development disclosed this in his office at the State secretariat while responding to news men on the deplorable state of the road despite its socioeconomic importance to the State and the nation at large.
Recall that barely a week ago The Authority Newspaper exclusively in her Monday September, 2023 Page 13 titled, Imo community cries out to IMSG, NDDC over road condition, reported the pitiable state of the road which inadvertently drew the sympathetic attention of the State Government and most members of the an the public.
The newspaper reported that there are indications that the Ubakuru Mbieri agrarian community, in Amaike Mbieri autonomous community in Mbaitoli council area of Imo State is in danger of being cut off, from the rest of the world, if nothing urgent is being done to address the deplorable conditions of Orie Mbieri – Ubakuru – Eke Iho road which is the only road linking them to the rest of the world.
In view of the socioeconomic and political importance of the State’s 15 kilometers ring cum by pass road to the ancient community and its environ like Umuahii, Obazu, Achi, Amakunta,Umuomumu all in Mbieri ogo afo na asato ancient kingdom, others include Ogwa, Iho communities and Owerri, the State capital among others.
The peaceful and productive community have cried out to Imo State Government (IMSG) under the Shared Prosperity leadership of Distinguished Senator Hope Uzodimma, and the newly inaugurated board of Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), to rescue them now from imminent dangers by embarking on the reconstruction and rehabilitation of the crucial road in their area that only received her first face lift by the State military government in 1990, about 33 years ago.
According to Nze Engr. Jonathan Amaechi, the community Paramount Chief and a British trained Structural Engineer, ” this is the worst state of roads I have ever seen, since I was born over 90 years ago. It’s a death trap. People no longer access the community and members of the community finds it difficult to access the rest of the world. It’s as bad as this.
” Honestly, if not the manual palliative measures the youths of the community have been doing on the road almost on daily bases, most of us aged would have died of hunger, lack of medications and frustrations, because you can neither go in nor out of the village because of the deplorable conditions of the road.
” The state of the road is simply un-motorable and undescribable, even with Jeep car, is likened to a journey to hell. The situation have become so worst that our people living outside the community have lost interest in coming home, mainly due to inaccessibility of the only major but link road. Recall that the road is the only by pass and life wire of the ever busy Okigwe Owerri road.
” Truely, it’s morally annoying and frustrating that despite all the legitimate efforts of the people as a community and their less than 10 minutes drive strategic location to Owerri as a State capital, both the present and previous administrations of the State seems to give deaf ears to their plights. It’s our candid believe that the Shared Prosperity and 3 R administrative mantra of Governor Hope Uzodimma or NDDC will soon answer our clarion calls by rebuilding, reconstructing and rehabilitating this ancient of days road so as to boost my people’s participatory morale in the forthcoming November 11th governorship election in the State ” he assured.
For Mr. Chibuike Anyaegbu, a frontline youthful community leader and an illustrious son of the demoralized community reiterated that the road, despite its socioeconomic importance to Imo State rural communities and Nigeria at large, has in recent time become an eyesore to motorists and pedestrians even as he called on Governor Uzodimma and NDDC to expedite actions on the road so as to avert imminent environmental doom.
Anyaegbu pointed out that, “it’s frustrating that our people have been cut off from the rest of the world due to the deplorable state of the road. We have been psychologically, emotionally and economically strangulated especially during raining season. They hardly transport their farm produces to nearby markets. My people are predominantly farmers and we are one of the food baskets of the nation.
” Moreso, the road have instigated the high rates of truancy among our secondary school students because most of them finds it difficult to access their schools due to lack of motorable route, thus, we are the only village in the entire Mbieri ancient kingdom, that is existing with out a nearby secondary school” he lamented.
The Kogi State based business icon passionately appealed to Imo State Government and the recently inaugurated board of NDDC to accelerate actions on the road, in view of its strategic importance to the socioeconomic and political development of the people.
Adding his voice, Engr Ike Nnamdi John Bosco, the President of Ubakuru Mbieri Town Development Union and the Patron of Mbieri ancient kingdom clan youths association’s also expressed disenchantment over years of abandonment of the road both by the State and Federal Government agencies, informing that the road traversed over 4 council areas of the State that includes Mbaitoli, Ikeduru and Isiala Mbano among other local government areas.
John Bosco recalled that the road was asphalted since 1990 during the military era and since then subsequent governments were only paying lip service attention to the state of the road. This he said led to its present devastating stage and called for accelerated attention in rebuilding and rehabilitation.
He applauded the youths of the area for their patriotic zeal in maintaining the road even as the community he said equally takes care of their adjoining rural roads just to have access to their kith and kins, despite government’s neglect on the well being of the community.
The Philanthropic President further expressed optimism that the State Government and NDDC will soon see the need to maintain the community’s only access route to the global communities.
Similarly, Mr. Sydney Louis Iyke, the Ubakuru Mbieri Youth President, reconfirmed that the road is “terribly bad and a death trap, capable of endangering users health”.
Iyke disclosed that the youths of the area are aggrieved, because of the state government lack of concern on the poor state of the road. This he said compel them to be working on the road every Saturday just to guarantee at least the pedestrians accessibility to the exit road.
He also advised IMSG and NDDC on the need to ensure an earliest reconstruction, rehabilitation and rebuilding of the road so as to fasten developments in the rural communities through their ever willing investors, who are only being discouraged by the dilapidated state of the road.
