The commercial city of Aba in Abia
State used to be famous for the
ingenuity of the locals. They copied and produced all manners of products. In fact, any product that was not made abroad was popularly referred to as Made in Aba or Aba made. Those were the days when the city was groovy.
Today, Aba, which used to be the
economic capital of the South-East, is a failed city. Or so it seems. All the
indices are manifest in the content and character of the city.
The moment you step into Aba, you will notice that the city is sick, terribly sick.
The vibrancy and zest have been
replaced by gloom and frustration
because the city has fallen apart.
According to Chief Charles Eduzor,
Chairman, Nigeria Bar Assoociation
(NBA), Aba Branch: “The economy of
Aba has collapsed because of the
neglect of the town. People are merely
living here now by the grace of God.
They live from day to day, praying that God sees them through the next day.”
That is how deep Aba has sunken,
sliding into oblivion. Aba is paradise
lost. The once vibrant, bubbly city is
lying prostrate, like a criminal in chains.
Aba ia s a shadow of itself. It is like a
lady raped and abandoned in the sun,
dressed in tattered robe, hair unkempt,no make-up, without shoes.
You would not like to be in Aba when it rains. When the heavens open, the
tears, pains and anguish of Aba
residents flow like a river. When it
rains, Aba becomes a floating city
because their drainages are blocked
where they exist.
Living in Aba is, indeed, a nightmare.
To be condemned to reside there is
living in bondage, it is living in a state
of perpetual suffering. It presents a
pathetic picture that can melt even a
stony heart. It is a portrait of a city
criminally neglected.
You begin to feel the situation of Aba
even before you come to town. To start with, it is often difficult to find a cab that will take you from Sam Mbakwe International Cargo Airport, Owerri, Imo State. The reason is not far fetched. A trip to Aba can take anything from five hours for a distance of far less than 100 kilometres. So, only the brave driver can embark on such a trip and the passenger must be ready to cough out about half of the air fair from Lagos to Owerri.
Coming to Aba from Owerri, you will
begin to understand why airport taxi
drivers avoid Aba like a flea when you
get to KM 7 Enugu-Port Harcourt
Expressway. There, vehicles are easily
buried in the gullies on both sides.
When a trailer is trapped in there,
commuters can be stuck there for
several hours. On such occasions, some passengers alight from their vehicles and cross over to the other side and board another vehicle. But it is not usually as easy as that. The depth of the mud on the road is such that if you step out of the vehicle, it will swallow your shoes. So, before stepping out to trek, you must remove your shoes and fold your trousers to knee length.
And after navigating to the other side,
you buy water to wash up before
wearing your shoes again. Another
tragedy could strike while you are
trying to clean up. Your money and
other valuable things could be
snatched by criminals, prowling the
area. Although soldiers mount a
checkpoint nearby, investigations
revealed that travellers are sometimes
attacked there by armed robbers.
.
INSIDE ENYIMBA CITY:-
Aba, popularly known as Enyimba City,is in a shambolic state. Divided into two local government areas, – Aba South and Aba North, it is characterised by infrastructural collapse, particularly dilapidated roads. In fact, the roads can be likened to valleys in the shadow of death.
To underscore the harrowing
experience of commuters in Aba,
lawyers in the city embarked on
peaceful demonstration recently.
Carrying placards with inscriptions such as “Weep for Aba,” “This is Aba, the location of hell on earth,” “The worst roads in the world are in Aba,” and “Live in Aba, live in hell,” the lawyers added a touch of drama as they marched on the streets wearing rain boots. The unique combination was to show how the deplorable condition of roads in the city had compelled residents to dress like people living in the jungle. To booth, they sang songs portraying Gov. T. A Orji as a non-performer.
Also, during the lying in state of former Biafran leader, Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, at the Enyimba Stadium in February, Orji was booed and pelted with satchets of water by angry residents.
Perhaps, it could be said that Aba has
become a jungle of sorts. Virtually all
the roads in the city have failed
portions. Indeed, looking for a good
road in Aba is akin to searching for a
virgin in a maternity ward. The
situation in Aba is such that potholes
have degenerated into craters and
gullies, making parts of the city
impassable. In some parts, whenever it rains, flood will take over the roads and sack some homes.
One of the worst is Ohanku Road. Part
of the road is permanently flooded and residents derogatorily refer to it as River Ohanku. Beside the ‘river’ is a manhole, which sources said had
claimed some lives. Indeed, the
condition of the area is so terrible that
you wonder how human beings reside
and survive there.
The adjoining streets are also piteous
spectacles. Ironically, Ohanku Road
leads to the home of the Minister for
Labour and Productivity, Chief Emeka
Wogu, at Iheorji. Perhaps, a canoe will
come to the rescue anytime the
minister visits home.
Ngwa Road, an arterial road, is nothing to write home about. The road is broken and flooded in some areas,making it a Herculean task to get to Ngwa Road market. Worse still, the area is littered with garbage.
Just as Ngwa, Omuma Road is in a
highly deplorable condition. Perhaps,
Omuma is worse. The long stretch is
defined by flooded craters that tend to swallow vehicles. Indeed, the portion of Omuma, connecting Ariaria, is just not motorable. It has been overtaken by bush right in the middle.
Going to Ariaria Market through Faulks Road is a horrifying experience. The traffic is horrendous as craters dot the road. In some parts, large stones are used to fill the holes, making movement clumsy as motorists labour to avoid their tyres being torn.
Your heart bleeds when you get to
Ukwumango at Ariaria. There, you
behold the failure of government. The
water-logged crater there is knee deep.
Only extraordinarily brave drivers and
tricyclists (Keke riders) dare to drive
through and most of the time they get trapped in there. Some youths have found the ugly development a source of survival as they stay in the dirty water, pushing out trapped vehicles and Keke for a fee.
Eziukwu Road is also in terrible
condition just as Osusu Road, which
has remained impassable for two years according to sources. Only big vehicles venture into that axis.
.
GALLERY OF DECAY:-
It is the same story all over the city.
From the “town part” to Umungasi,
Over Rail, Ama Ogbonna, Amamong,
Umule and elsewhere, it is the same
story of neglect and/or abandonment.
Residents of these areas are united in
grief and agony as their surroundings
are in decrepit state.
For Aba residents, the bubble has
burst. Driving or riding in cars is no
longer a pleasurable experience. Many of them have packed their cars,
preferring to trek because there are no roads to drive on. Mr. Augustine
Chekwas, a businessman, told the
reporter: “I no longer drive my car
around because when you do, it ends
up at the mechanic workshop because of the bad roads. So, now, I only drive my car to church on Sundays or special occasions. Living in Aba is a punishment.”
Checks revealed that the area known
as the “town part,” which is the heart
of the city, has lost its charm. For
instance, St. Michael’s Road is
potholes-ridden just as Yorke Street is
dreadful and serves as rendezvous for
drug users. Milverton Avenue, which is the home of transport companies,
travelling all over the country, has
fallen into disrepair. One cannot arrive
from the beginning of the road to the
end because it has been cut into two.
Nigeria’s first president, the late Dr.
Nnamdi Azikiwe, must be turning in his grave in anger because of the state of the road named after him in Aba.
Azikiwe Road is littered with bad spots
from one end to the other.
As it is in Azikiwe Road, so it is in East
Street, Ulasi Street, Eche Road, Ndoki
Street, Dike Street, Emelogu Street,
Ehere Road, Azuka Extension, Ogbor
Hill, Urakpa Road, Owuala Street,
Onuoha Street, Broad Street, Uzoigwe
Street, Ehime Street and Hospital Road,among many others. Perhaps, Okigwe Road is the only road in Aba without problems but it s a short stretch. Aba –Owerri Road is also good but the absence of drainage makes it a nightmare when it rains.
To travel on the Aba-Ikot Ekpene Road
is akin to embarking on a suicide
mission. A federal facility, connecting
Aba with Akwa Ibom and Cross River
States, it is a no-go area because it has remained derelict for long.
As Chief Francis Ene, an Aba
businessman, summed up in terms of
roads, the city is dead. “I don’t know
what we have done to deserve this but we are appealing to government to come to our aid by giving Aba roads facelift. The condition of roads puts the city in precarious economic situation,’Ene said.
.
ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION:-
Apart from the ugly state of roads in
Aba, other areas suffer corresponding
neglect. Take this: Epidemic looms in
the city because of overflowing refuse
dumpsites everywhere. For example,
East Street has been overtaken by
refuse. Emelogu Street is home to a
mountain of refuse. Heaps of decaying,smelly refuse also constitute eye sore at such places as Ngwa Road, Asa Road, Aba-Owerri Road, Omuma Road and Aba-Ikot Ekpene Road, among many others. Aba is dirty, very dirty indeed. And it is nobody’s business to evacuate the filth.
Pools of stagnant water on the streets,especially residential areas could have dire consequences for Aba residents.
Among other places, Ehere Road at
Ogbor Hill, Ohanku Road, Ngwa and
Omuma are cases in point. In these
areas, pools of dirty, smelly water
stagnate all year long because of
blocked drainages. In some cases,
residents wade through the pool daily
to access their homes.
The abbatoir at Waterside is another
potential source of health hazard to
Aba people. When the reporter visited
the facility recently, it was in a
distasteful state. An acrid odour hung
in the air like a fog. Worse still, a
decomposing corpse was abandoned
on the bridge, close to the slaughter
point, with flies feasting on it. Indeed, it was an ugly spectacle. Instructively,
soldiers, who had maintained a
checkpoint at the spot beside the
abandoned Enyima Hotel building since kidnappers held the city by the jugular,moved a few inches away because of the stench emanating from the corpse.
It was also gathered that cows at the
abbatoir are sometimes allowed to run
riot on the road causing accidents. Mr.
Andrew Z. Esiaba, a banker,lamented:
“We escaped death by the whiskers the other day when a cow ran onto the road and started destroying everything in sight. It took sometime before the handlers were able to bring it under control. That was not the first time such a thing was happening. In fact, it happens all the time and sometimes people lose their lives. Unfortunately, the authorities are not doing anything to arrest the menace of the cattle and their rearers.”
.
TRADING IN TEARS:-
Ariaria market used to be the pride of
Aba. Then buyers and sellers were
happy going to the market for the
Made in Aba products.
Nowadays, those who do business at
Ariaria and their customers tell a tale of woes. In fact, traders, who can afford to satisfy their needs elsewhere do so with gladness. The reason is not far fetched. Ariaria, like the rest of the city, is in dire straits. Whichever way you access the market, you are bound to be confronted with the challenge of traffic snarl caused by the bad roads. And when you get into the market, the sight that greets you makes you weep.
“A Line,” which used to be the flagship of the market is worse than shit. It is squalid, like a piggery.
According to one of the leaders in the
market, who did not want his name in
print, when it rains, many of the shop
are flooded because there is no place of escape for the water.
He said: “The gutter is filled so when it rains everywhere is flooded, destroying goods in the shops. People wear rain booth in the market whenever it rains.
Yet, we are made to pay all sorts of
levies, including infrastructure and
sanitation levies. We have paid N6,500 each shop this year as well as two-year-rent in advance. If you fail to comply,your shop will be locked up and no businessman can afford that.”
He presented many receipts to prove
his case, regretting that the condition
of the market and surrounding is
discouraging customers from coming to patronise them.
Again, there is no electricity supply
from PHCN in the market. Traders
provide electricity for themselves in the market through generating sets. Some people have turned the situation to their advantage by buying generating sets and supply power to interested traders at N150 per day.
It was gathered that there are 110 sub unions that make up the market. Each snub union has not less than 300 members or traders. However, the traders are in chains, so to say. They cannot speak freely or openly about the deplorable state of affairs in the market because if you do, “they will send Bakassi people to deal with you.” In fact, the fear of Bakassi is the
beginning of wisdom. According to a
source, Bakassi, a vigilance group, is
used to terrorise people in the city.
.
LIKE ARIARIA, LIKE KEKE:-
Investigations revealed that keke riders are made to pay for four different tickets daily and they are issued with receipts after making such payments.
They include ASPIMS Daily Road Safety ticket, Daily Road Income Tax ticket, Daily Infrastructural Development Levy ticket and Amalgamated Tricycle Operators Association ticket. There are also weekly levies.
Residents too Residents of Aba also complain of being compelled to pay all manners of levies with nothing to show for it. According to St. Moses Ogbonna, an activist, “the only thing that thrives in Abia and Aba in particular is levy. There is infrastructural levy, ASEPA levy, gutter levy, keke levy and so on. As I am talking to you, Keke people have been asked to pay N1,000 into the bank.
Nobody knows what the levy is all
about. Bus drivers are asked to pay
N2,000 each. All they do is to collect
levy, no work. That is the situation we
found ourselves.”
Efforts to speak with the council
chairmen proved abortive. However,
the Chief Press Secretary to the
governor, Mr. Ugochukwu Emezue, said in view of the nature of the city, the government could not afford to
abandon it. In a telephone chat, he
volunteered that as soon as the rains
were over, comprehensive rehabilitation work would commence in the city. He added that government
had repaired some roads and opened
up blocked drainages before the rains
interrupted the effort. “The governor
has promised to give Aba the attention it deserves,” he asserted.
LINk:
www.sunnewsonline.com/new/cover/aba-a-failed-city/

chucky234: The commercial city of Aba in Abia
State used to be famous for the
ingenuity of the locals. They copied and produced all manners of products. In fact, any product that was not made abroad was popularly referred to as Made in Aba or Aba made. Those were the days when the city was groovy.
Today, Aba, which used to be the
economic capital of the South-East, is a failed city. Or so it seems. All the
indices are manifest in the content and character of the city.
The moment you step into Aba, you will notice that the city is sick, terribly sick.
The vibrancy and zest have been
replaced by gloom and frustration
because the city has fallen apart.
According to Chief Charles Eduzor,
Chairman, Nigeria Bar Assoociation
(NBA), Aba Branch: “The economy of
Aba has collapsed because of the
neglect of the town. People are merely
living here now by the grace of God.
They live from day to day, praying that God sees them through the next day.”
That is how deep Aba has sunken,
sliding into oblivion. Aba is paradise
lost. The once vibrant, bubbly city is
lying prostrate, like a criminal in chains.
Aba ia s a shadow of itself. It is like a
lady raped and abandoned in the sun,
dressed in tattered robe, hair unkempt,no make-up, without shoes.
You would not like to be in Aba when it rains. When the heavens open, the
tears, pains and anguish of Aba
residents flow like a river. When it
rains, Aba becomes a floating city
because their drainages are blocked
where they exist.
Living in Aba is, indeed, a nightmare.
To be condemned to reside there is
living in bondage, it is living in a state
of perpetual suffering. It presents a
pathetic picture that can melt even a
stony heart. It is a portrait of a city
criminally neglected.
You begin to feel the situation of Aba
even before you come to town. To start with, it is often difficult to find a cab that will take you from Sam Mbakwe International Cargo Airport, Owerri, Imo State. The reason is not far fetched. A trip to Aba can take anything from five hours for a distance of far less than 100 kilometres. So, only the brave driver can embark on such a trip and the passenger must be ready to cough out about half of the air fair from Lagos to Owerri.
Coming to Aba from Owerri, you will
begin to understand why airport taxi
drivers avoid Aba like a flea when you
get to KM 7 Enugu-Port Harcourt
Expressway. There, vehicles are easily
buried in the gullies on both sides.
When a trailer is trapped in there,
commuters can be stuck there for
several hours. On such occasions, some passengers alight from their vehicles and cross over to the other side and board another vehicle. But it is not usually as easy as that. The depth of the mud on the road is such that if you step out of the vehicle, it will swallow your shoes. So, before stepping out to trek, you must remove your shoes and fold your trousers to knee length.
And after navigating to the other side,
you buy water to wash up before
wearing your shoes again. Another
tragedy could strike while you are
trying to clean up. Your money and
other valuable things could be
snatched by criminals, prowling the
area. Although soldiers mount a
checkpoint nearby, investigations
revealed that travellers are sometimes
attacked there by armed robbers.
.
INSIDE ENYIMBA CITY:-
Aba, popularly known as Enyimba City,is in a shambolic state. Divided into two local government areas, – Aba South and Aba North, it is characterised by infrastructural collapse, particularly dilapidated roads. In fact, the roads can be likened to valleys in the shadow of death.
To underscore the harrowing
experience of commuters in Aba,
lawyers in the city embarked on
peaceful demonstration recently.
Carrying placards with inscriptions such as “Weep for Aba,” “This is Aba, the location of hell on earth,” “The worst roads in the world are in Aba,” and “Live in Aba, live in hell,” the lawyers added a touch of drama as they marched on the streets wearing rain boots. The unique combination was to show how the deplorable condition of roads in the city had compelled residents to dress like people living in the jungle. To booth, they sang songs portraying Gov. T. A Orji as a non-performer.
Also, during the lying in state of former Biafran leader, Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, at the Enyimba Stadium in February, Orji was booed and pelted with satchets of water by angry residents.
Perhaps, it could be said that Aba has
become a jungle of sorts. Virtually all
the roads in the city have failed
portions. Indeed, looking for a good
road in Aba is akin to searching for a
virgin in a maternity ward. The
situation in Aba is such that potholes
have degenerated into craters and
gullies, making parts of the city
impassable. In some parts, whenever it rains, flood will take over the roads and sack some homes.
One of the worst is Ohanku Road. Part
of the road is permanently flooded and residents derogatorily refer to it as River Ohanku. Beside the ‘river’ is a manhole, which sources said had
claimed some lives. Indeed, the
condition of the area is so terrible that
you wonder how human beings reside
and survive there.
The adjoining streets are also piteous
spectacles. Ironically, Ohanku Road
leads to the home of the Minister for
Labour and Productivity, Chief Emeka
Wogu, at Iheorji. Perhaps, a canoe will
come to the rescue anytime the
minister visits home.
Ngwa Road, an arterial road, is nothing to write home about. The road is broken and flooded in some areas,making it a Herculean task to get to Ngwa Road market. Worse still, the area is littered with garbage.
Just as Ngwa, Omuma Road is in a
highly deplorable condition. Perhaps,
Omuma is worse. The long stretch is
defined by flooded craters that tend to swallow vehicles. Indeed, the portion of Omuma, connecting Ariaria, is just not motorable. It has been overtaken by bush right in the middle.
Going to Ariaria Market through Faulks Road is a horrifying experience. The traffic is horrendous as craters dot the road. In some parts, large stones are used to fill the holes, making movement clumsy as motorists labour to avoid their tyres being torn.
Your heart bleeds when you get to
Ukwumango at Ariaria. There, you
behold the failure of government. The
water-logged crater there is knee deep.
Only extraordinarily brave drivers and
tricyclists (Keke riders) dare to drive
through and most of the time they get trapped in there. Some youths have found the ugly development a source of survival as they stay in the dirty water, pushing out trapped vehicles and Keke for a fee.
Eziukwu Road is also in terrible
condition just as Osusu Road, which
has remained impassable for two years according to sources. Only big vehicles venture into that axis.
.
GALLERY OF DECAY:-
It is the same story all over the city.
From the “town part” to Umungasi,
Over Rail, Ama Ogbonna, Amamong,
Umule and elsewhere, it is the same
story of neglect and/or abandonment.
Residents of these areas are united in
grief and agony as their surroundings
are in decrepit state.
For Aba residents, the bubble has
burst. Driving or riding in cars is no
longer a pleasurable experience. Many of them have packed their cars,
preferring to trek because there are no roads to drive on. Mr. Augustine
Chekwas, a businessman, told the
reporter: “I no longer drive my car
around because when you do, it ends
up at the mechanic workshop because of the bad roads. So, now, I only drive my car to church on Sundays or special occasions. Living in Aba is a punishment.”
Checks revealed that the area known
as the “town part,” which is the heart
of the city, has lost its charm. For
instance, St. Michael’s Road is
potholes-ridden just as Yorke Street is
dreadful and serves as rendezvous for
drug users. Milverton Avenue, which is the home of transport companies,
travelling all over the country, has
fallen into disrepair. One cannot arrive
from the beginning of the road to the
end because it has been cut into two.
Nigeria’s first president, the late Dr.
Nnamdi Azikiwe, must be turning in his grave in anger because of the state of the road named after him in Aba.
Azikiwe Road is littered with bad spots
from one end to the other.
As it is in Azikiwe Road, so it is in East
Street, Ulasi Street, Eche Road, Ndoki
Street, Dike Street, Emelogu Street,
Ehere Road, Azuka Extension, Ogbor
Hill, Urakpa Road, Owuala Street,
Onuoha Street, Broad Street, Uzoigwe
Street, Ehime Street and Hospital Road,among many others. Perhaps, Okigwe Road is the only road in Aba without problems but it s a short stretch. Aba –Owerri Road is also good but the absence of drainage makes it a nightmare when it rains.
To travel on the Aba-Ikot Ekpene Road
is akin to embarking on a suicide
mission. A federal facility, connecting
Aba with Akwa Ibom and Cross River
States, it is a no-go area because it has remained derelict for long.
As Chief Francis Ene, an Aba
businessman, summed up in terms of
roads, the city is dead. “I don’t know
what we have done to deserve this but we are appealing to government to come to our aid by giving Aba roads facelift. The condition of roads puts the city in precarious economic situation,’Ene said.
.
ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION:-
Apart from the ugly state of roads in
Aba, other areas suffer corresponding
neglect. Take this: Epidemic looms in
the city because of overflowing refuse
dumpsites everywhere. For example,
East Street has been overtaken by
refuse. Emelogu Street is home to a
mountain of refuse. Heaps of decaying,smelly refuse also constitute eye sore at such places as Ngwa Road, Asa Road, Aba-Owerri Road, Omuma Road and Aba-Ikot Ekpene Road, among many others. Aba is dirty, very dirty indeed. And it is nobody’s business to evacuate the filth.
Pools of stagnant water on the streets,especially residential areas could have dire consequences for Aba residents.
Among other places, Ehere Road at
Ogbor Hill, Ohanku Road, Ngwa and
Omuma are cases in point. In these
areas, pools of dirty, smelly water
stagnate all year long because of
blocked drainages. In some cases,
residents wade through the pool daily
to access their homes.
The abbatoir at Waterside is another
potential source of health hazard to
Aba people. When the reporter visited
the facility recently, it was in a
distasteful state. An acrid odour hung
in the air like a fog. Worse still, a
decomposing corpse was abandoned
on the bridge, close to the slaughter
point, with flies feasting on it. Indeed, it was an ugly spectacle. Instructively,
soldiers, who had maintained a
checkpoint at the spot beside the
abandoned Enyima Hotel building since kidnappers held the city by the jugular,moved a few inches away because of the stench emanating from the corpse.
It was also gathered that cows at the
abbatoir are sometimes allowed to run
riot on the road causing accidents. Mr.
Andrew Z. Esiaba, a banker,lamented:
“We escaped death by the whiskers the other day when a cow ran onto the road and started destroying everything in sight. It took sometime before the handlers were able to bring it under control. That was not the first time such a thing was happening. In fact, it happens all the time and sometimes people lose their lives. Unfortunately, the authorities are not doing anything to arrest the menace of the cattle and their rearers.”
.
TRADING IN TEARS:-
Ariaria market used to be the pride of
Aba. Then buyers and sellers were
happy going to the market for the
Made in Aba products.
Nowadays, those who do business at
Ariaria and their customers tell a tale of woes. In fact, traders, who can afford to satisfy their needs elsewhere do so with gladness. The reason is not far fetched. Ariaria, like the rest of the city, is in dire straits. Whichever way you access the market, you are bound to be confronted with the challenge of traffic snarl caused by the bad roads. And when you get into the market, the sight that greets you makes you weep.
“A Line,” which used to be the flagship of the market is worse than shit. It is squalid, like a piggery.
According to one of the leaders in the
market, who did not want his name in
print, when it rains, many of the shop
are flooded because there is no place of escape for the water.
He said: “The gutter is filled so when it rains everywhere is flooded, destroying goods in the shops. People wear rain booth in the market whenever it rains.
Yet, we are made to pay all sorts of
levies, including infrastructure and
sanitation levies. We have paid N6,500 each shop this year as well as two-year-rent in advance. If you fail to comply,your shop will be locked up and no businessman can afford that.”
He presented many receipts to prove
his case, regretting that the condition
of the market and surrounding is
discouraging customers from coming to patronise them.
Again, there is no electricity supply
from PHCN in the market. Traders
provide electricity for themselves in the market through generating sets. Some people have turned the situation to their advantage by buying generating sets and supply power to interested traders at N150 per day.
It was gathered that there are 110 sub unions that make up the market. Each snub union has not less than 300 members or traders. However, the traders are in chains, so to say. They cannot speak freely or openly about the deplorable state of affairs in the market because if you do, “they will send Bakassi people to deal with you.” In fact, the fear of Bakassi is the
beginning of wisdom. According to a
source, Bakassi, a vigilance group, is
used to terrorise people in the city.
.
LIKE ARIARIA, LIKE KEKE:-
Investigations revealed that keke riders are made to pay for four different tickets daily and they are issued with receipts after making such payments.
They include ASPIMS Daily Road Safety ticket, Daily Road Income Tax ticket, Daily Infrastructural Development Levy ticket and Amalgamated Tricycle Operators Association ticket. There are also weekly levies.
Residents too Residents of Aba also complain of being compelled to pay all manners of levies with nothing to show for it. According to St. Moses Ogbonna, an activist, “the only thing that thrives in Abia and Aba in particular is levy. There is infrastructural levy, ASEPA levy, gutter levy, keke levy and so on. As I am talking to you, Keke people have been asked to pay N1,000 into the bank.
Nobody knows what the levy is all
about. Bus drivers are asked to pay
N2,000 each. All they do is to collect
levy, no work. That is the situation we
found ourselves.”
Efforts to speak with the council
chairmen proved abortive. However,
the Chief Press Secretary to the
governor, Mr. Ugochukwu Emezue, said in view of the nature of the city, the government could not afford to
abandon it. In a telephone chat, he
volunteered that as soon as the rains
were over, comprehensive rehabilitation work would commence in the city. He added that government
had repaired some roads and opened
up blocked drainages before the rains
interrupted the effort. “The governor
has promised to give Aba the attention it deserves,” he asserted.
LINk:
www.sunnewsonline.com/new/cover/aba-a-failed-city/

you forget to add ukaegbu road in ogbor hill,the road is nothing to go with.the road has divided into two.then talking about levies you didn't borehole levies,gutter levies.Abia state governor is a heartless n greedy man

these are the real pictures of the completed roads in Aba so don't come here to post an aberrant picture claiming to be an NBA

emindu: these are the real pictures of the completed roads in Aba so don't come here to post an aberrant picture claiming to be an NBA

I can bet wit my life. This pics of yours aren't Aba. Why are you spreading falsehood? What shall it benefit you? How much are you paid to post another state's road pics here claiming its Aba.
Am in Aba now. The OP write up is nothing but the truth. He didn't mention Obohia road. Aba is a shawod of its own. This dry season, the thief gov should come and patch tHe roads plz. Who is holding him again? Is Orji uzor Kalu still holding him captive?

MOd., frontpage please. let's see if it will waKe the governor up.

real pictures of Roads in Aba

What exactly is the governor doing. Why has he neglected Aba?

emindu: real pictures of Roads in Aba

May God have mercy on you for these lies.

afam4eva: What exactly is the governor doing. Why has he neglected Aba?

The actual "development" which he has enacted is centered mainly in Umuahia where he is either erecting one "world class" hospital or one "international" business center. Other than that, he's busy acquiring mansions and landed properties throughout the state.

Let me draw one particular case to your attention. Can you imagine that in the whole of Arochukwu (the third-largest town in Abia) there is not one decent government hospital? As a result of this, the mortality rate is unnecessarily high and people (especially children) continue to die due to preventable diseases.

The only semi-decent hospital in the entire LGA is private-owned and is in Abam. Aside from that the next one is in Ohafia (which is nearly an hour away due to the poor roads). If you wanted a decent hospital, aside from the one in Ohafia, you'd have to drive all the way to Umuahia.

odumchi:

The actual "development" which he has enacted is centered mainly in Umuahia where he is either erecting one "world class" hospital or one "international" business center. Other than that, he's busy acquiring mansions and landed properties throughout the state.

Let me draw one particular case to your attention. Can you imagine that in the whole of Arochukwu (the third-largest town in Abia) there is not one decent government hospital? As a result of this, the mortality rate is unnecessarily high and people (especially children) continue to die due to preventable diseases.

The only semi-decent hospital in the entire LGA is private-owned and is in Abam. Aside from that the next one is in Ohafia (which is nearly an hour away due to the poor roads). If you wanted a decent hospital, aside from the one in Ohafia, you'd have to drive all the way to Umuahia.

I was almost going to make your exact comments. Nigerians seem to be so destracted by roads that they believe everything about governance is centered on road construction. The Nigerian psyche is the neater the roads, the better a governor. Theodore Orji has scored low in many aspects of governance because of his personal ambitions.

Amaechi. Has built over 300 primary schools of the highest Nigerian standard as well as completed two independent power generating plants and yet people criticize him because of the poor state of roads in Port harcourt.

odumchi:

The actual "development" which he has enacted is centered mainly in Umuahia where he is either erecting one "world class" hospital or one "international" business center. Other than that, he's busy acquiring mansions and landed properties throughout the state.

Let me draw one particular case to your attention. Can you imagine that in the whole of Arochukwu (the third-largest town in Abia) there is not one decent government hospital? As a result of this, the mortality rate is unnecessarily high and people (especially children) continue to die due to preventable diseases.

The only semi-decent hospital in the entire LGA is private-owned and is in Abam. Aside from that the next one is in Ohafia (which is nearly an hour away due to the poor roads). If you wanted a decent hospital, aside from the one in Ohafia, you'd have to drive all the way to Umuahia.

I was almost going to make your exact comments. Nigerians seem to be so destracted by roads that they believe everything about governance is centered on road construction. The Nigerian psyche is the neater the roads, the better a governor. Theodore Orji has scored low in many aspects of governance because of his personal ambitions.

Amaechi. Has built over 300 primary schools of the highest Nigerian standard as well as completed two independent power generating plants and yet people criticize him because of the poor state of roads in Port harcourt.

The Governor of Abia should be impeached, publicly tried and stripped of all he stole from that state.