Contractors abandon work on Enugu-Port Harcourt highway
By Anayo Okoli
Umuahia-THE fast deteriorating Enugu-Port Harcourt Express road has become a death trap as contractors hired to repair the road under the supervision of FERMA have since abandoned work on the road.
The state of the road deteriorated in the last three weeks following heavy rainfall.
The 25 kilometers stretch between Okigwe Junction in Imo State and Umuahia, the Abia State capital, can best be described as no-go area as motorists have virtually abandoned that portion.
This stretch of the highway is now littered with broken-down vehicles. Scores of heavy duty trucks that were trapped in many of the bad spots are now blocking the road for smaller vehicles.
Vanguard observed that the contractors abandoned repair work on the road since December 2010. Sources blamed their action on non-payment by the Federal Government.
The deplorable state of the road has also attracted the attention of Governor Theodore Orji of Abia state, who recently took the matter to the Works Minister in Abuja, and drew the attention of the Federal Government to the deplorable condition of the road.
The Enugu-Port Harcourt road has virtually been abandoned by motorists as those who still ply the road do so at grave risk.
In view of the deplorable state of the road the Abia State Governor, Chief Theodore Orji and his convoy were compelled to take an alternative route, Monday, when they were going to Enugu to declare open a three-day retreat the government organized for its commissioners, permanent secretaries and other top civil servants.
The convoy had to go through Isiukwuato to Uturu and on to Okigwe, which prolonged the journey for at least 45 minutes.
To avoid further damage in their vehicles, motorists now ply the Isiukwuato-Utruu route, another Federal road which is not smooth either, while some go through Okigwe Junction through Mbano to Umuahia, which prolongs the journey by at least one hour thirty minutes.
