The agony of residents, motorists, business owners and commuters has increased following the deteriorating state of a section of the Eneka-Rumunduru Road, through Rumuosunwo Community, in Obio/Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State.
Currently, the incessant rain fall has made the section of the road at the pipeline axis very terrible, posing serious threat to its users.
While business owners lamented over the difficulties they face accessing their shops and how people no longer patronize them, motorists decried the damages caused by the dreaded section of the road on their vehicles.
Aside the clustering of rainwater on the road, the deep potholes are indeed terrifying, it takes very experienced drivers, who are used to the road to navigate through without getting stock.
Speaking with newsmen in an interview, a certain Mr. Joseph Itoro who owns a shop at the area explained that, “the road is very terrible. No drainage. The road is bad. Business here is like no business at all and this area is very strategic, very good business area but because of the bad road we are just leaving our house every morning and going back some times empty.
“Yes, sometime ago the road was filled by some youths. They used stones to fill some part and even tried to open the drainage that other side but it did not last. The water has gone down, let rain fall just one time, you will not even be able to cross to my shop.
“It is terrible my sister. We have been negging government we don tire. There was a time those boys at the junction there that used to collect money from Keke people even helped to do something. Those blocks there they scattered it but see for yourself.
“We have school, big school here. That place is a hotel. This pipeline, one school there, Pripepa water covered the outside. How will children enter the place? It’s very disturbing. Let the community people do something about it, please, that is my own. We are suffering on this road seriously.”
While recalling the effort made by the Eneka Youth Congress, some time ago, to cover some parts of the dilapidated road, a tricyclists who gave his name as Solomon Israel lamented that, “we are the ones suffering it. Yes, make I talk am as eh dey pepper me for body. Na we dey suffer pass.
“This Keke no be my own, I dey give daily account, I go put fuel, if eh spoil na my head, we go pay tasks, sometimes nothing dey follow person go house. This road dey spoil my keke well well, na the village people wey I get be this.
“My own na make them help us fix the road, shikina.”
Another tricycle rider, Nnamdi Odili said, “you have seen it; the road is very bad, if keke doesn’t spoil, water will full our keke and wet passengers because as car is coming like this, they will pour water into our keke and our passengers will also suffer it, so let them do this road, it’s really bad.”
Others who took turn to speak with our correspondent were a resident, along the waterlogged pipeline road, Mrs Elizabeth Jerry and a commuter, Elijah Godson. Their appeal was for the Community Development Committee of Eneka to swing into action and repair to road to avert complete collapse.
In response, a leader in the community, Mr. Okechukwu Waka expressed the belief that the road will be fixed in no distant time, even as he appealed to the users to exercise patience.
Star Reporters was yet to reach the Chairman of the Community Development Committee, Mr. Nwosu Chima, as at the time of filling this report.