Anguish on varsity, polytechnic access road

For residents of Nekede, Ihiagwa, the university community and visitors to the Federal Polytechnic Nekede and the Federal University of Technology, Owerri (FUTO), nothing makes them feel hollow besides the present economic hardship, than the deplorable condition of the only access route in the community.

Going in and out of the area has now become an arduous task as the all-important road, which was in good condition a few months back, has now become almost impassable even for motorists riding in Sports Utility Vehicles (SUVs.)

The road, from Owerri, capital city of Imo State, has been cut into two due to the devastating flooding suffered in the area recently, which has terribly softened the ground surface, turning the road into a muddy mess.

Any vehicle attempting to pass through the bad portion, especially when the road is still muddy, gets stuck.

As a result, commuters are left with no choice than to travel a longer distance with higher fares from Owerri, through the Port Harcourt Road, to their destination. Other means is to engage the services of commercial motorcyclists, who navigate the bad portions by riding through several private residences and compounds after paying toll fees to some youths in the communities.

According to a community leader in Nekede, who is a lecturer at the Department of Mass Communication, Federal Polytechnic, Oko, Anambra State, Dr. Christian Meziobi, the situation of the road has become a nightmare to road users.

Speaking with The Guardian, Meziobi urged all relevant authorities to come to their aid and rescue the community from being cut off from other parts of the state.

“It is horrible. I spent two hours trying to access my ancestral home, in a journey of 10 minutes from Owerri. Look at the way the road has become. I know that resources are limited, but I am appealing to the governments at all levels to come to our aid.”

According to a monarch in the area, Eze Maurice Eke, his subjects are in pains moving from one spot to the other.
Eke said early warning signs of the road’s disintegration were ignored by the state government.

Speaking recently, the Commissioner for Works, Mrs. Josephine Udorji, said the state government has begun the rehabilitation of roads, but regretted the volume of rains as impediment to completing all the road projects.