By Lamai Cassius
The ever busy Auchi-Abuja road was on Monday temporary blocked to vehicular movements by hundreds of youths in Auchi, the administrative headquarters of Etsako West Local Government following a peaceful protest over the gully erosion ravaging the community and the incessant cases of kidnappings in the area.
The youths converged at the popular Jattu Junction with their placards, calling on the relevant government authorities to address the gully erosion and incessant kidnapping in the community.
The youth under the umbrella of Auchi Youth Council (AYC) blocked the Jattu axis of the Benin-Auchi-Abuja express way to draw government’s attention to problems.
Speaking on behalf of the protesters, Mr Chalaman Momoh said the protest is to draw the attention of government and relevant authorities over the Worsening state of the gullies and unabating cases of kidnapping of harpless members of the community.
“We are here to cry out to the government on the issue of gully erosion that is ravaging our community.
“We have written to the government and we have not gotten any response.
“We are also having the issue of kidnapping everyday.
“We have this kidnappers going into the homes of our people in the community to kidnap them.
“We are calling on government to come to Auchi to salvage the gully erosion and put an end to the incessant kidnapping of our people in the community,” Momoh said.
Also speaking, the Coordinator, Edo Take It Back Movement, Mr Hafiz Lawal said no fewer than 15 persons in Auchi have been kidnapped with over N70 million paid as ransom.
Lawal, who is also the Coordinator of Coalition for Edo North Youths for Good Governance (CENYGG) listed the gully erosion sites to include those at Utsokhwilli, Water Tanker Road and Auchi-Igarra Road.
“The demands we are placing before government is the erosion ravaging Auchi and the issue of insecurity with 15 persons from Auchi so far kidnapped”, Lawal added”.
Meanwhile, commuters and motorists got stranded at the popular Jattu junction on the Benin-Auchi-Okene highway with a significant number of heavy duty trucks, smaller vehicles, motorcycles, and commuters seen in long queues at the junction.
LSecurity personnel from the Nigeria Police Force, Nigeria Army and Special Security Force were on ground to ensure law and order by the protesters to forestall it’s possible hijack by hoodlums.
