The Coalition of Civil Society under the auspices of “Save Cross River Federal Roads” has called on President Muhammadu Buhari and the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC to intervene in the deplorable state of the Odukpani-Itu Highway that has killed many in the last 2 months.
Leaders of the group, Sunday Micheal and Castro Ezama who took journalists to visit the road said the failed portions of the highway have become a hideouts for Kidnappers, armed robbers and other criminals, who ambush and take unsuspecting motorists hostage on a daily basis. Some of the commuters who narrate their experiences said the road has become a yearly hideout for criminals especially during the raining season.
They called on the Federal Government for urgent intervention before the Calabar which is the Cross River State capital will be cut off from the rest of the southern part of the country. The Calabar-Odukpani-Itu Road connects Cross River State with other southern parts of Nigeria and with the current situation more than 100 heavy duty trucks and other articulated vehicles are stranded, while some smaller vehicles broke down as a result of the deplorable condition of the road which has been awarded by the Federal Government but without construction.
(Editor: Terverr Tyav)