By Emma Amaize, Regional Editor, South-South, Jimitota Onoyume, Ozioruva Aliu, Ochuko Akuopha and Paul Olayemi

No human being will drive through  the Benin-Sapele-Warri section of  the East-West Road, a federal highway that links the six South-South states without crying for the Niger Delta, and the country.

Even cows, goats, fowl, and other animals that traders convey in the several trucks from the northern part of the country that had broken down on the dilapidated road would protest the repulsion.

The segment from Benin City, the capital of Edo State to the oil city of Warri, the commercial nerve center of Delta State is strategically important because if it collapses, four other states- Bayelsa, Rivers, Akwa-Ibom, and Cross-Rivers States will be cut off. That is exactly the situation now.

The media have consistently drawn attention to the “death trap” that the ramshackle motorway has turned into for nearly two decades, while motorists, travelers, and other citizens have shouted themselves hoarse at the public embarrassment.   

Many a time, an epic tragedy has to shatter the peace of the nation for the government to distinguish that things are not the way a privileged few running the country want others to perceive a situation from their tapered prism.

If not, how does one classify last Sunday’s falling-off of a petrol tanker on the endangered road, which led to the death of over 20 persons in a consequent detonation, despite the urgent appeals by monarchs, clerics, drivers, commuters, and traders to the government to fix the road, in the last few months? Ridiculously, the Nigerian government, and officials, often, live in denial and let citizens undergo pains before accepting a palpable reality. 

Buhari/Fashola exploits

A former Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, while addressing State House correspondents after the Federal Executive Council meeting on November 6, 2019, said Nigerian roads were not as bad as they portrayed them to be.

“I know that this (discussion) is going to be your headline, but the roads are not that bad. For me, the reports on the poor state of the roads are mere hype and nothing more,” Fashola reportedly said.

The ex-minister specifically said the comments on the Warri-Sapele-Benin road were overblown. Irate Nigerians, who went for his head, jammed the social media with pictures showing the horrible conditions of roads across the country.

Fashola later recanted the claim, saying the media took his comments out of context. According to him, “I didn’t use the word ‘exaggerated’, I didn’t say that. Please listen to what I said, thank you.”

For the eight years of the President Muhammadu Buhari government (2015-2023), the administration did nothing substantial to fix the Benin-Sapele-Warri road, and the degradation continued. It was at the twilight of the regime in April that Fashola said, ”Talking of Benin-Sapele- Warri, road, we have just awarded the contract because we got funding from the NNPC. There are other roads that we have not touched and I understand that the ones that we have done are no longer newsworthy.”

Ex-minister of State for Budget and National Planning, Clem Agba, was later to clarify that Buhari approved the reconstruction of the three sections of the Benin-Sapele-Warri Road under the Federal Government Road Infrastructure Development and Refurbishment Investment Tax Credit.

“The sections of the road that have been awarded for reconstruction are Section 1 made up of the 28.275 kilometer-long Benin-Imasabor in favour of Messrs Levant Construction Company Limited in the sum of N98,916,451,227.28 inclusive of 7.5 percent VAT with a 24-month completion period;Section II made up of 38.525 kilometer-long Imasabor-Ibada Elume in favour of Messrs GELD Construction Company Limited/Triata Nig. Ltd (JV) in the sum of N127,648,926,047.37 inclusive of 7.5 percent VAT with a 36-month completion period;In addition, Section III made up of 23.2 kilometer-long Ibada Elume-Warri in favour of Messrs SKECC Nigeria Limited in the sum of N89, 142,998,919.59 inclusive of 7.5 percent VAT with a 42-month completion period,” he said.

As typical, nothing happened on the road until Buhari handed over to President Bola Tinubu, on May 29.

Umahi cries but still no action  

The new Minister of Works, and former governor of Ebonyi State and an engineer,  Mr. David Umahi, who shed tears during his inspection tour of several federal roads, including the Abuja-Lokoja-Benin-Warri-Port-Harcourt highway, last month, said Nigerian roads have worsened from having ‘potholes’ to having ‘boreholes’.

He faulted the design of many of the federal roads, saying they would not last over three to four years.

His words: “…I say, these projects, give them three to four years, they will fail. There is no project under construction in Nigeria now that is going to last for seven years.

“The question is: Are we just going to be maintaining or reconstructing our roads after every 10 years? And that is what we have been doing,” he stated.

The tears of Umahi, who spent 14 hours on the road from Abuja to Benin City have not translated to anything near his new “concrete-paved” prescription for roads in the country when the October 1 tragedy at Ugbenu part of Benin-Sapele-Warri road occurred.

The petrol tanker driver was trying to navigate the many ‘boreholes’ on the road when his vehicle overturned, causing multiple accidents.

More dead bodies recovered

On Wednesday, four days after the October 1 disaster when Saturday Vanguard visited the Ugbenu, where the fear of an epidemic loomed large, some villagers said they pulled out more dead bodies floating in the swampy water the previous day.

A sympathizer said: “We recovered more dead bodies from the swampy water on Tuesday. When the fire broke out, many of the victims attempted to escape through the swampy water without knowing its depth, and it trapped them. Some relatives buried the remains of their loved ones by the roadside, close to the scene of the incident.

Ugolor lambasts FG

The Executive Director of the African Network for Environment and Economic Justice, ANEEJ, Rev. David Ugolor, who visited the scene of the accident, Wednesday, blamed the federal government for the disaster.

“The federal government could have averted such a colossal loss if it took urgent steps to complete the East-West Road project, which was started many years ago. 

“Several appeals have been made to the federal government to address this issue, but the pleas have fallen on deaf ears, only recently, the Minister of Works, Eng. Dave Umahi, visited the areas for an on-the-spot assessment, we expected rehabilitation work to begin immediately, but this has not happened,” he said.

My horrendous experience – Mene, Itsekiri, leader

The Secretary, Itsekiri Leaders of Thought, ILoT, Sir Sunny Mene, who lives in Benin, and shuttles very often between Benin and Warri for meetings, said, “The Sapele – Benin road which is part of the East-West has been abandoned by successive governments for so many years now.

“During every rainy season, traveling on the road has been a nightmare, particularly the Ologbo in Edo State to Koko Junction in Delta State. 

”Ordinarily, this is a journey of fewer than 15 minutes, but travelers, including my humble self, have spent between six to eight hours on that stretch of road that should not have taken over 15 minutes.

“We urge the new government of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to take up the challenge of reconstructing the road. I believe they did not envisage the number of heavy-duty vehicles on this swampy terrain in the original design of the road. In fact, the loads now being carried on that road will be better on trains.

“While we urge the government to expedite action on the completion of the East-West road, we also encourage the government to complement the road with a railway line.”

We slept a night on the road – Bishop Odudu

The senior pastor of a church in Sapele, Delta State, Bishop Elijah Odudu, told Saturday Vanguard: “I spent a night at Ologbo. When we got to Benin from where I was coming from I thought I was going to get home that day, but at Ologbo, we ran into very thick traffic in the evening.

“I had expected we would still leave there early. However, there was no movement for several hours. Travelers slept in their vehicles that night. Several security men I presume were on escort duties and were all over providing security.

“We finally left the place in the morning hours. I got to Amukpe at about 7 a.m. or so. Government should use this dry season to work on the road.”

From Warri to Asaba before going to Benin-Abulu, lawyer

Francis Abulu Esq., a Warri-based lawyer said to keep an 11 a.m. appointment with the Police in Zone 5, Benin City, on September 18, he had to travel Warri-Ughelli-Asaba before proceeding to Benin City, as the shorter route of Warri-Sapele-Benin was in a deplorable state, and practically impassable.

“I left Warri at 7am for a meeting that was slated for 11am in Benin, which I arrived at 3:45 pm. We had to cut off that section of the road by going through Asaba. Unfortunately, the Asaba-Benin section was in a deplorable state as well.

“Therefore, the driver had to take an alternative route, diverting through Agbor-NTA Road, a lane lonely road, especially at the Edo end. 

“I told the client, a single mother of twins that no amount of money could have taken me out of my office, but for my desire for her to get justice for her and her eight-year-old twins (male and female) abandoned by a serving councilor in one of the local government areas in Delta state. 

“We heard people in the vehicle saying that we escaped possible kidnapping as the route has gradually become a kidnapper den of sorts. 

As I had gone by public transport, it was impossible for me to return through the route because it scared me to go through another ordeal. Eventually, I got to the Ologbo (Edo State) section of the Benin-Warri Road; there were standby several motorcyclists, better known as ‘Okada men’, doing brisk business.

“I paid an Okada man N1,000 to take me out of the portion of the road that was terrible and where many vehicles were stuck between Ologbo and Koko Junction, Oghara, on the Delta section that could be relatively okay. I got back to Warri at 11pm in the night,” he said. 

I visit the mechanic after every trip – Ogbe, driver

A commercial driver who plies the Benin-Warri road, Jethro Ogbe told Saturday Vanguard. “Before now, the journey from Benin to Warri used to be within 50 minutes for even a slow driver, but now, it is a very terrible situation. The last trip I made on Tuesday, it took me five hours before I got to Warri from Benin.’

 “In fact, one cannot conveniently tell you the particular area of the road that is not bad right from the Benin bypass till you get to your destination, but the worst area where you spend hours is Ologbo and Koko, and if it rains, it is untold pain.

 “I visit the mechanic after every trip because before you complete the journey, something must be wrong with your vehicle. At a point, I was considering stopping it entirely but if I do, what other thing will I do to take care of my family, so I have to continue.”

My journey to Warri a nightmare – Aguinede, commuter  

A commuter, Patrick Aguinede, said, “My last trip to Warri, about three weeks ago, was a nightmare. We got stuck at a spot that some of us had to disembark; took a commercial  motorcycle through bushes that I never knew, and I am told is prone to kidnaping to the next village before I could get another vehicle to Warri.”

Commercial bus driver, Champion Onowhe, who plies the Sapele-Benin route daily, said, “This road is in a terrible condition. Before, it used to take me about 30 minutes to complete the journey but now it takes over five hours because of the bad portions.” 

It gives me a headache –Ladi, truck driver

Haruna Ladi, a truck driver, disclosed, “Each time I am coming from Port Harcourt heading to Lagos, the thought of this road gives me a headache, because I spend six to seven hours here and it drains me, please let the Federal Government do it for us”

Plague –Odiahi, motorist

A motorist, Mr. Paul Odiahi, said: “Most worrisome is the constant rate at which trucks loaded with products somersault and block the entire breadth of the road causing a menace to other road users, thus building uncontrollable traffic for days and weeks.”

The last time the road was motorable –Josephine

Osagie Josephine, a commuter said, “The last time the road was in a good state was about four years ago. Since then, it has been one repair or another, but no major one, and I think it is individuals.

Nwankwo, driver finger Ugbenu stream

Ifeanyi Nwankwo, who says he plies the road thrice a week, however, attributed the damage at Ugbenu to the stream that crosses the road.

He said: “When it rains, it affects the road seriously, and it gets worse, I think if they can channel the water to the other side by building a canal, the damage will reduce.”