Enugu Communities Urge Completion Of Ebonyi River Bridge

The five communities that
make up Isi-Uzo Local Government Area of Enugu State have cried out to Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi to come to their rescue following the abandonment of the Ebonyi River Bridge at Ikem, which rehabilitation was started by the former governor, Sullivan Chime but was stopped half way about two years ago.
The people, who pleaded with Ugwuanyi to complete the abandoned bridge project, pointed out that it links the council headquarters that connects the entire council area, saying that the makeshift bridge presently constitutes a danger to road users.
They said that the project has been completely abandoned as the contractor has moved out of site with all the equipment and materials for the execution of the project.
The people, therefore, pleaded to the state government to make the contractor return to site and complete the project.
A hanging bridge built shortly after the Nigeria/Biafra war had collapsed last year in the area, cutting off the communities until contributions by individuals from the area were made to fix a one-way emergency bridge that is now also on the verge of collapse, if an urgent measure was not taken to complete the concrete bridge which is 70 per cent completed.
The Chairman of Isi-Uzo Progressives Forum (IPF), Chief Gabriel Nnaji, said that the bridge had collapsed completely last year which brought sufferings, hardship and pains to the people before the now existing makeshift bridge was put in place.
A lecturer at that Federal College of Education, Ehamufu, Dr Chuks Nwadiogo, lamented over the state of the bridge, urging the government to do the needful to enable the contractor return to site and complete the project.
According to him, “some of us that go to school from Enugu use the road since Ehamufu-Nkalagu road has collapsed, so we now use Ikem, Neke road to Enugu, and if the bridge finally collapses, we will be trapped because that is the only access road.”
A staff of the local government, Mrs Uzoamka Ugwuodo, also lamented over the hardship the workers have been subjected to since the hanging bridge collapsed.
A staff of the construction company, who pleaded anonymity, said that the firm deserves commendation for executing the job up to the level it did before demobilizing from site, stating that funding was a major problem inhibiting the completion of the project.
The staff also explained that the job they relocated to do at Udenu Local Government Area was not a direct job, but a sublet, stating that once the government releases money to the company, they would return to site to complete the bridge project.