BY ANAYO OKOLI

UMUAHIA—WITH the rainy season at its peak, the deplorable condition of many of the Federal roads in the South East, particularly Enugu-Onitsha, Enugu-Okigwe-Umuahia-Aba-Port Harcourt Federal Highway and Umuahia-Ikot Ekpene and Aba-Ikot Ekpene roads have further deteriorated.

As a result, motorists plying the busy Enugu-Okigwe-Umuahia-Aba-Port Harcourt Federal Highway are now going through hell passing through some dilapidated portions of the express road. A greater part of the stretch of the express road could rightly be described as a death trap.

Meanwhile, from Enugu to Aba, nearly all the journey is done on a single lane only because some parts of the two lane-road have been completely written off and abandoned.

Right from the NNPC Mega Station at the Naira triangle in Enugu metropolis, deep potholes dangerously located right in the middle of the road dotted the entire stretch up to Awgu, the boundary between Enugu and Abia States.

The dangerous potholes continue up to the Lekwesi, Umuchieze to Lokpanta Cattle market which are the communities in Abia State. Worst affected on this stretch are the spots at a cattle market and Lekwesi.

Again, deplorable spots on the road at Ihube, Umulolo and Okigwe junctions are disturbing. Series of fatal accidents have been witnessed at the Ihube junction as motorists not familiar with the road usually run into the bad spots suddenly while speeding.

However, the most harrowing spot is at Okigwe junction. The terrible condition of the road is usually compounded by the indiscriminate parking of tippers and other trucks, at times taking up part of the road, making it extremely difficult for motorists to maneuver . Okigwe Local Government has never cared to call them to order but always sends their agents to collect un-receipted revenue which emboldens the truck drivers to block the road with their vehicles.

Ironically, the trucks are dangerously parked just about a pole to the zonal office of the Federal Road Safety Commission and an Army post, whose officers at times struggle to clear the traffic mess thrown up by the reckless parking by the truck drivers.

After wriggling out of the chaotic Okigwe junction traffic , a motorist travelling to Umuahia, Aba and Port Harcourt is again faced with other deplorable spots between Ofeme and NNPC Mega Station, all in Umuahia. Also, motorists have totally abandoned some portions of the Umuahia-Ikot Ekpene Federal Road due to its deplorable condition.

The economic importance of these roads to the nation is so great that one wonders why they were allowed to degenerate to this level.

For the Umuahia-Ikot Ekpene road, it has completely become impassable on some portions, particularly between Ndioru and Okwe. Motorists are now forced to divert from Ndioru and meander through the rural villages to cut off the impassable portions.

This has on many occasions pitched drivers against the natives of the villages who accuse them of damaging their rural roads with their fully loaded heavy trucks as well as other small vehicles which pass through the road.

The situation has made some rural youths impose tolls on the rural roads to be paid before any motorists is allowed to pass through, a development that had on some occasions caused frictions between them and motorists.

Communal palliative efforts usually put up by villages have never had any meaningful impact as the magnitude of the dilapidation is far beyond what they can handle.