…as failed roads cut off Agrarian community, cripple economy

Residents of Ebu Community in Oshimili North Local Government Area of Delta State have raised fresh concerns over the worsening state of roads linking the agrarian settlement to Edo State and neighbouring communities, warning that decades of infrastructural neglect have pushed the community into economic and social isolation.

The residents said the deteriorating condition of both the federal and state roads serving the community has severely disrupted farming, trading, education and other socio-economic activities, leaving one of Delta State’s major food-producing communities struggling for survival.

 

Speaking with The Guardian on Sunday, the Assistant Secretary to the community’s traditional ruler, Mr. Nelson Ogbolu, described the road network as virtually impassable, noting that residents now face enormous hardship travelling to neighbouring communities such as Ezi, Ukala and Issele-Uku.

 

According to him, the situation has become worse during the rainy season as heavy-duty trucks and trailers transporting goods through the area further damage the already failed road.

 

Ogbolu recalled that the road was last constructed over three decades ago during the administration of former Delta State Governor, Chief James Onanefe Ibori, but has since deteriorated without any major rehabilitation, with several sections completely collapsing.

 

He warned that the poor state of the road is undermining agricultural production, which remains the backbone of the local economy, as farmers now struggle to transport produce to markets while traders incur higher transportation costs.

 

Residents expressed frustration over what they described as years of government neglect despite repeated appeals for intervention.

 

“For many years, we have cried out over the condition of our roads, yet little or nothing has been done. Today, Ebu is practically cut off from neighbouring communities because both the federal and state roads are no longer motorable,” one resident lamented.

 

Accordingly, the poor road infrastructure has increased the cost of transportation, restricted access to markets, schools and healthcare facilities, and deepened the economic hardship facing families across the community.

 

The palace Assistant secretary therefore appealed to both the Federal and Delta State Governments to urgently reconstruct the failed road corridors and provide other essential infrastructure capable of restoring economic activities and improving living conditions.

 

He stressed that timely intervention would not only ease the suffering of residents but also strengthen food production and rural development in the state.