Indigenes of the four Ogoni Local Government Areas under the Ogoni Liberation Initiative (OLI) on Monday staged a protest over the deplorable state of the Eleme-Onne section of the East-West Road.
The protesters barricaded the road for over an hour. They decried the federal government’s neglect of the road about a year after it was awarded for repair, following a massive protest by natives, commuters, civil society groups, and others.
On Friday, a trailer transporting a 40-foot container rammed two vehicles off the Aleto bridge into the river, killing four people.
During the protest, Dr. Douglas Fabeke, who is the President of the OLI, said that the terrible condition of the Eleme section of the East-West Road was a big problem for people who live in the area and commuters.
Fabeke was upset by the number of accidents on the road that killed innocent people and destroyed valuable property. He said that the road has become a death trap for commuters because they are always afraid to drive next to heavy-duty trucks from companies.
The president, who is a senatorial candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in the 2023 elections in Rivers State, expressed condolences to the families of those that lost their loved ones in the fatal accident that occurred between October 7 and October 14, 2022, on the road.
He stated that the accidents would have been avoided if the government had made good its promise by reconstructing the road, saying: “The death of these innocent people is one of the too many recent incidents that triggered this action.”
“The section of the road measuring 15 kilometres from the trailer park to Eleme junction with a connecting bridge is one of the busiest segments of the federal highway resulting from the consistent haulage of goods from the Onne seaport, the Port Harcourt Refinery, the Indorama Petrochemical, and the Oil and Gas Free Trade Zone, among others.”
The road goes from Khana, Gokana, Tai, Eleme, Andoni, Opobo/Nkoro, Okrika, and Oyigbo to Port Harcourt. These areas are in Akwa Ibom and the Cross River States.
“The road also serves over 200 multinational companies, such as the Indorama Petrochemical and Fertilizer Company, Intels Nigeria Limited, Nigeria Ports Authority, Port Harcourt Refinery, and many others.”
“The Federal Government of Nigeria had promised several times to fix the bad section of the road, but the people are yet to see any sign of construction work. This is very sad and unfortunate considering the billions of naira the government generates from the companies using the road.”
The protesters, however, call “on the Federal Government of Nigeria to immediately, within seven days, commence work on the reconstruction of the road and the remodelling of the existing connecting Aleto bridge, which is nearing collapse, failing which the Ogoni people shall mobilize again and shut down all forms of transportation and economic activities on the road.”
 on Monday staged a protest over the deplorable state of the Eleme-Onne section of the East-West Road.){kind=link}