WARRI – Residents of Ubeji in Warri South Local Government Area of Delta State have appealed to Governor Ifeanyi Okowa to as a matter of urgency, fix the Ubeji Road which according to them has become a death trap to motorists due to recurring accidents.
The residents while decrying the harrowing experiences they and other motorists who ply the road go through on a daily basis , called on the a state governor to make good his promise by fixing the road which was uncompleted by past administration; as according to them, “government is a continuum.”
Rights activist and resident of Ubeji ,Chief Robinson Ariyo , who has been in the forefront of the advocacy on addressing the poor state of Ubeji road, recently on his Facebook page , said,
“Governor Okowa had promised to fix the road within a time that has lapsed and I don’t think it is gentlemanly to make such a strategic promise and fail not to keep it. It is morally wrong and unacceptable in my opinion. ”
Chief Ariyo, a legal practitioner and Egogo of Warri kingdom further said,
“The failure to fix that road amounts to a neglect of the duty of government towards the people of that area whom the Governor directly promised the commissioning of same in record time.
“Service to humanity transcends any party affiliation. “He opined.
Other residents also attributed the poor state of the road to heavy tankers that endlessly ply the road to get petroleum products from private tank farms situated at Ubeji.
Oritsegbemi Tessy, an Ubeji resident said ” all these petroleum tankers are causing great havoc on the road. They park indiscriminately ; and when they are broken down, they make the already bad situation worse.”
Apart from several manhours being lost on a daily basis due to traffic congestion, residents have also expressed apprehension over likely fire disaster on the Ubeji road and called on government to be proactive in addressing the issues raised; adding that socioeconomic activities have almost been grounded owing to the bad state of the road.
Ubeji which is access to Ebgokodo and Ifie both Itsekiri communities; is also host to several Tank farms and the Nigerian Gas Company (NGC) which is a subsidiary of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC).
