By Correspondent in Lokoja
Motorists and other members of the public in Lokoja, kogi state capital,have again called on the Federal government to complete the rehabilitation of the 10-kilometre Ganaja road, to ease their hardship in plying the road.
In separate interview with the Correspondent of The Reporters, an online publication in Ganaja village on Thursday, the people described their experience in plying the road as terrible, a development they was going beyond what an average motorist or passengers could no longer tolerate.
Drivers such Amos Nwachukwu, an Onitsha-Abuja bound driver, Mohammed Ndanusa, a Lokoja-Ajaokuta bound driver and Umar Alli, who plies the road to the states in the South-east parts of the country, decried the slow pace of work on the road, the rehabilitation of which started in November 2020.
“Driving on this road is like passing through the hottest part of hell,in view of the glaring and worsening nature of the road, particularly from the Commissioners’ quarters to Ganaja village.
“Apart from the potholes which the telling effect on the accelerated wear and tear on my vehicle, I am also not finding easy driving on the road as the effect on the potholes is negatively affecting my health on a daily basis,” Nwachukwu bemoaned.
His colleague, Alli, who spoke in similar vein, said that the chunk of his proceeds usually go for the repair of his vehicle, with little or nothing left to maintain himself and his family.
The father of four, attributed one of the causes of the ghastly accidents along the road to the delay in completing the rehabilitation of the road.
“The recent accident that occurred between an articulated vehicle and kekenapep was partly caused by the lack of illuminating sign on the road during which the driver of the articulated vehicle had head on collision with kekenapep while trying to avoid a deep pothole.
” I am using this medium to appeal to the Federal government to see to the timely completion of the road to put an to our suffering and avoidable accident occuring on this road. Enough is enough,” he said.
The Reporters recalls that it took the clarion of the state Commissioner for Works and Housing, Engr. Abdulkarim Ohere,who also expressed concern over the delay in complaing the rehabilitation, some time ago,for the contractors to resume work.
They, however, abandoned the work after completing one lane of the 200 unit junction to Tobi’s plaza, leaving the road users suffering, a situation the users of the facility said had subjected them to the popular saying, “suffering and smiling” while waiting in vain for when the rehabilitation will be completed.