Representative Valentine Ayika, representing Anaocha/Dunukofia/Njikoka Federal Constituency of Anambra, has called on the Anambra and Enugu state governments to undertake some palliative repairs on dilapidated portions of the Enugu-Onitsha Expressway.
Ayika made the call in an interview with the News Agency Nigeria (NAN) in Awka on Monday.
He expressed concern that the rains had washed off several portions of the road, making it impassable and nightmarish to motorists.
He said that at a point, he had to personally intervene by filling some potholes around Amansea-Oji axis with stones he purchased with his resources.
The lawmaker, who said that he personally supervised the filling of the potholes, said that he took the measure after seing the difficulty faced by motorists plying the road.
He said: “As I was returning from Abuja, I got near Anambra-Enugu boundary and saw how bad the road has become.
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“As a matter of fact, I saw a man crying profusely and decided to find out why.
“He told me that he was the driver of a truck, which fell on the road, while he was trying to negotiate through the potholes.
“The man said that he would be made to fix the truck and also pay for the damaged goods.
“That was why I decided to purchase five trucks of stones, which was used to fill the potholes in order to make it passable,” he said.
Ayika urged Anambra and Enugu governments to intervene with short-term measures in the interest of their citizens, who use it on a daily basis, even though it was a federal road.
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He said he had solicited the support of the Speakers of Anambra and Enugu Houses of Assembly, adding that they had promised to collaborate with him for more palliatives.
He thanked the Federal Government for awarding the road for rehabilitation but requested that the job should be expedited.
“The Southeast is erosion prone and our roads are terribly bad. Rain is doing serious damage to them.
“I therefore call on the federal government to declare a state of emergency on the roads in the zone.
“The roads in question are federal roads but people in the states are those using them, so our state governments should intervene as a matter of urgency because people are suffering.
“I am an ordinary citizen but I represent a people who use the portion of the road that I worked on, which is located on Enugu side,” he said.(NAN)
