The President of the Ijaw Youths Council, Jonathan Lokpobiri, has appealed to the Federal Government to urgently address the massive dilapidation on the East West Road.
Lokpobiri made the appeal in a goodwill message to the four-day Niger Delta Stakeholders’ Summit, which commenced on Wednesday in Port Harcourt.
He implored President Bola Tinubu to take immediate action before the region would be completely cut off from the rest of the country.
“The East West Road needs urgent attention, considering that many sections of the road are in very deplorable condition.
“I urge the Minister of Works, Chief Dave Umahi, to swing into action to end the difficulties faced by motorists and commuters on this road,” he said.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) gathered that the Okogbe axis of the road in Rivers has completely collapsed, leaving many communities in the area isolated.
A participant at the summit, Alabo James, shared his concerns after recently travelling through the road.
James expressed dissatisfaction with the slow pace of work on the project by the contractor.
According to him, travellers now navigate through the thick forests and farmlands for over two hours before rejoining the East West Road.
He also said that the extensive dilapidation of the road had resulted in an increase in transport fares from Bayelsa to Port Harcourt.
Presently, transport fare from Bayelsa to Port Harcourt has risen from N4,000 to N5,000 by car, and from N2,000 to N3,000 by bus.
