Bundu Residents Decry Bad Road

Residents of Bundu area in Old Port Harcourt Township have raised an alarm over the poor state of the only road leading into their neighbourhood.
The area which borders the Port Harcourt Dockyard hosts three federal agencies: the Port Harcourt Correctional Centre, Dockyard and Railway Quarters. Also, the NPA Quarters and the Prison Quarters are located along the Bundu Road which terminates at the waterfront with squatter buildings.
From the junction, which forks to the prison quarters and dockyard to the left axis down, the road has grown craters and most of the tar is gone.
The bumpy ride to Bundu waterfront starts from the prison quarters entrance and stretches down to the squalid neighbourhood bordering the riverside.
The poor condition of Bundu Road is now having a toll on drivers.
Some taxi drivers, who spoke to The Tide Metro over the poor condition of the road said they now spend most of their daily returns on motor repairs.
One of the taxi drivers, who ply the dilapidated road, Olusanya Bakari, said he had been plying the route for the past 12 years but that the current situation of the road is the worst in recent years.
He stated that the road which was last repaired in 2015 has deteriorated to the extent that bus drivers now avoid going through the route.
The Tide Metro confirmed that commercial buses now drop commuters half way, by the junction close to the Maximum Correctional Centre at Dockyard and turn.
This development from The Tide Metro investigations, has doubled transport fare for most of the residents, who lament that the situation now is putting strain on their finances.
On the huge expenses incurred from repair of their vehicles, Bakari said, “on weekly basis, I repair my steering box, break box, break pad and bolts. All the suspensions in my vehicles are gone.”
Bakari urged government, especially the federal government, whose agencies are majorly located around the area, to save the situation.
On his part, Chinedu Ezekiel, alias “Prince Nwakaibeya”, recalled that the road had been under disrepair since 2015 , “ after the maintenance, there had not been any effort to upgrade the condition of the road”, he stated.
With a huge population and presence of Nigeria Ports Dockyard and Railway Quarters, Mr Ezekiel said, it was sad that the area is abandoned.
Prince Nwakaibeya said, they spend huge sums to fix their vehicles, hence, the transport fare which used to be N50 from Lagos Bustop to Bundu has increased to N100.
Aside bad road, he disclosed that Bundu also has poor infrastructure, such as potable water and power, “ What we need now is good road and government should come to our rescue”, he stressed.
A resident, Owutubo Adolpus, told The Tide Metro that the road has been dilapidated for the past three years, “the road is affecting us seriously. Our business is affected as well,” he observed,
Many pedestrians avoid the muddy road and have to walk in front of the shops lining the roadside as Goodness Stephen, who runs a saloon, frowns at the situation. “Since I came here six months ago, the road has been like this and most taxis do not ply here again.”
Mr Adolphus’ wife sells fruit by the roadside, as he lamented that with the poor state of the road, it has become difficult to bring their goods into the area. “Sometimes, we have to hire wheelbarrow because the bus drivers and taxis would charge you higher, due to the bad road.”
The poor state of road in the area has not affected rent and accommodation cost as Mr Adolphus noted that rent has soared over the years. The Tide Metro learnt that a room in the area now goes for N7,000 as against N3,500, some few years back.
Folake Oyedele, a meat seller by the roadside, told The Tide Metro, she has lived in the nieghbourhood for up to 40 years. “I was born and bred here,” she stated as she decried the poor condition of the road.
Oyedele tasked indigenes of the area to approach government to rehabilitate the road, “I don’t understand why they should relax and see the road go bad as it is today.”
Mrs Oyedele disclosed that many people were leaving the neigbour-hood because of the road, “government should come to our rescue, even vehicles are not coming to the place.”
For Jennifer Peter, who roasts plantain and yam near the prison club, the road has affected her business as customers who used to patronise her do not come again, “if you look at the environment, nobody would like to come and buy from us.”
She blamed the hike in transport fare to the poor state of the road, “We used to pay N50 but now, it is N100,” Mrs Peters said, while seeking for government intervention.
Apart from the road, key utilities are absent in Bundu area. Mr Adolphus said they don’t have potable water except wells and boreholes that serve as water sources. Most of them were dug during the colonial times, since the area was mostly quarters for government workers in the prisons and port authority, including railway.
Mrs Peter however, said, power provision is fair and above average in the area, “power generally is okay here. There is no day we don’t see light which is better than some areas.”

By: Kevin Nengia