Ukpenu/Emuhi /Ugiamwen Communities Cry Out Over State of Access Road.

.......appeals for urgent action

 

By Lucky Isibor.

Concerned indegenes of Ukpenu, Emuhi in Esan West Local Government Area and Ugiamwen in Uhunmode Local Government Area of Edo State have cried out over the state of the only road linking the three communities with Ekpoma and the outside world. They also lamented that the road has become a comfortable hideout for criminals who hibanate there after committing crimes in other areas of the state just as they also harass the road users.

In a statement signed by Osahon Airewele on behalf of concerned citizens of Ukpenu, Emuhi and Ugiamwen communities, they enumerated the losses indegenes of the area have suffered since 1947, the last time the road was given attention and appealed to all tiers of govermenmet to come to the aid of the communities

Part of Ukpenu/Emuhi/Ugiamwen Road.

According to the statement, "the precarious state of the Ukpenu-Emuhi-Epkoma and Ugiamwen road has been a sour and depressing issue for several decades now. The state of the road can no longer be ignored.

"This vital and only link between these communities to the nerve center of economic activities in the region has been in a permanent state of neglect since the colonial era. It is a matter of record that the last time there was any government presence on this link road was in 1947.

"The state of this perilous and deadly road has caused an increase in criminal activities in this area to say the least. It is easier for criminals to lie in wait for travelers who dangerously meander the poor condition of the road."

The concerned citizens of the communities also noted that the communities have not left the development of their villages to government alone as they've renovated public infrastructure from health centres to dispensaries, primary and secondary schools over the years.

"The neglect of these communities has led to the people employing self-help to build schools and health centers without the involvement of the government.

The Ugiamwen community was forced to employ self help to build a school that was in a pathetic state of dilapidation and deterioration that it became inhabitable and dangerous to inhabit.

Unfortunately, teachers could not work or transport themselves to the school because of the inaccessibility to this community. As a result, families desirous of their children’s education have had to send them to relatives in- Ekpoma, so that they can attend schools that have teachers. The ones who had no relatives outside of their immediate vicinity were left behind.

"The development of the ones left behind is arrested because of their inability to get formal education and can therefore sit idle and allow the destiny of these children to be amputated through our inaction?; the statement quarried.

"The Emuhi community has not fared better. The sons and daughters of Emuhi in diaspora had to rehabilitate the only health center built years ago. This health center serves as the only dispensary for first aid treatment and maternity for nursing mothers to receive basic prenatal care. As much as they are prepared to hire auxiliary medical staff for the health center, the inaccessibility to the community remains a hurdle.

People die daily as a result of their inability to transport sick relatives who need urgent attention to hospitals as close as Irrua specialist hospital which is less than eight kilometers away. People die daily from ailments that are routinely diagnosed and treated in hospitals.

Must we allow our relatives to die unnecessarily because of lack of accessible roads.?"

The statement appealed to the various levels of government to provide accessible road to the communities and benefit from the economic potentials in the area which will create employment opportunities and boost the state economy.

"These communities are basically agrarian. This region is blessed with a soil fertile enough to produce the most wholesome and comestible pineapple in the world. In a different clime, the resources in this communities would be enough to sustain the economy of a state if harnessed and developed properly.

"The ladder of opportunity to participate in the economy is squashed through the lack of accessible road. They toil year in, year out to cultivate and harvest crops only to see them rot away because of their inability to transport these crops to markets where they can reap the economic benefits of their yearlong efforts. The government has a duty to facilitate the inclusion of these communities into the economic mainstream rather than excluding them through its inaction."  

While appealing to other indegenes of Edo State to also add their voice to their call for action, the statement noted that the deprivation of any community in the state will be suffered by all Edolites and urged the government to approach the ecological fund for assistance to work on the road.

"Is it not our responsibility to ensure that the people in these communities do not labor in vain.?

The natural topography of Ekpoma directs the flood towards the Ukpenu-Emuhi-Ugiamwen Road and in the process the flood dislodges, dissolves and removes the surface material; thereby creating gorges that makes it dangerous for travel. Lives are cut short daily because of avoidable accidents and mishaps on this road.

For how long can we continue to ignore these death traps?

"Year after year our parents, elders in the community and concerned people in the community have continued to appeal to successive governments but the neglect and plight of the people in these communities have been ignored.

The Edo state government can access the Nigerian ecological fund to correct this grave and continuing error.

"The people of these communities partake in the political process: they voted for these officials responsible for making the decision that will alleviate their plight.

Their votes have been earned in the past through promises of action; and time and time again they have been failed and disappointed.

"The people who live in these communities are tax-paying individuals and entitled to partake in the economic activities that will enable them earn a living.

The children whose future is dependent on basic formal education represent the face and hope of our future.

The men and women whose efforts at making a living are being short-changed and frustrated daily are human beings who deserve our sympathy.

We as a people are accountable for the needless lives that are wasted on this road through avoidable deaths.

"We remind our fellow Edolites that the moment a community is deprived and neglected as the Ukpenu/Emuhi/Ugiamwen have been all these years; then all of us are deprived and our humanity is diminished."