Sokoto bridge collapse: Residents recount ordeal
The collapse of the Margai Bridge last Tuesday has left the residents of Kebbe Local Government Area of Sokoto State, especially those who want to go out of the area, with two options: either to travel by canoe or go through a very rough bush path with a lot of uncertainties because Kebbe is one of the LGAs experiencing banditry in the state.
The Margai Bridge links Kebbe with the other parts of the state, and since it collapsed, Daily Trust learnt that nobody went in or out of Kebbe town.
A resident, Malam Mustapha Ahmad, told Daily Trust, “Even our sole administrator cannot gain access to the area. He only stops at Margai village to assess the situation and console us.
“Our people are afraid to use any of the options because one cannot travel this long on water unless he knows how to swim; in case of any eventuality, and people are afraid to follow the route to Jega because of kidnapping,” and added that, “I have one assignment in Sokoto, but I cannot go.”
He noted with regret how the situation was affecting business activities in the area, saying their market was nearly empty during the last market day.
Ahmad, who is an educationist, maintained that the situation might affect the ongoing WAEC in the area because many students and invigilators could not come for the exams.
Another resident of Kebbe, Malam Anas Dukura, expressed fear that scores of students might miss the ongoing WAEC unless something was urgently done to salvage the situation.
Malam Dukura said, “There are students who are writing their examinations in Kebbe town from other communities who must pass through the bridge before coming here. We equally have some of our brothers writing their examinations in the neighbouring Tambuwal LGA who cannot go there.”
He, therefore, appealed to the state government to come to the aid of the students by providing the area with canoes before repairing the bridge.
The Sole Administration of Kebbe, Lawali Marafa Fakku, told our reporter that they had made a temporary arrangement to enable “our people travel outside the area by foot. We hired truck drivers who filled a portion of the road and we used sacks filled with sand to make a temporary pedestrian bridge through which our people can cross over to the other side.”
He explained that the bridge could not be repaired now because the water level was high.
Earlier, the sole administrator told Daily Trust that out of the 10 wards of the LGA; only one was spared by the flood.
He explained that, “I cannot tell you the number of houses and farmlands destroyed or quantify our losses. We can only get the data after the flood because as I am talking to you some of the communities have been submerged,” and added that, “We have never experienced such a thing in the history of Kebbe.”
He further said so far there was no report of death as a result of the disaster.
Meanwhile, Governor Aminu Waziri Tambuwal of Sokoto State has called on the
Federal Government to de-silt the Goronyo and the Bakolori dams to forestall and checkmate flooding in parts of the state.
Gov. Tambuwal made the call on Wednesday while commiserating with victims of the flood disaster in some LGAs.
The governor said currently the dams were congested with sand and debris; thus limiting their carrying capacity and increasing the chances of their being overwhelmed and overflowed with rainwater.
He also called for the expansion and improvement of the Falaliya Irrigation Scheme in Goronyo LGA so as to improve food production in the state and the country at large.
He said the state government was going to send experts to the affected areas to assess the level of damage in terms of infrastructure and animals.
Tambuwal assured that the state government would also immediately send relief materials to the victims, and explained that the state government was working on the possibility of establishing a dam at Jiccini village in Rabah LGA which he said would go a long way in preventing flooding.
Tambuwal further announced that the state government would support dry season farming extensively in a such way that all those who have lost crops to the flooding would recover, stressing that the state government was working towards this not only because of the incident of flooding, but in order to reposition the state for agri-business and to also minimise the impact of COVID-19 on the economy.
He also called on the people of the area to continue to support the effort of the state government, in collaboration with security agencies, in restoring peace in some parts of the state.