Communities in Edo Block Bad Benin-Sapele Road

There was chaos in several parts of Benin City, capital of Edo State yesterday as residents of Ogheghe and other communities near the by-pass along Benin – Sapele road blocked the road for the fourth day, complaining about its bad state that has made it impassable.

A resident in the area, Omo Osifo said the reason for the protest was because of deaths in that axis of the road, the latest being the killing of a young man by a truck that was driving against traffic to avoid the bad spot.

He said: “Why should the government not fix that road? We heard that the state government is saying it is a federal road but how does that affect us, we don’t know federal road, we know we are in Edo state where there is a government, we have the local government, we have the oil and gas commission, we have NDDC, we have commissioners but nobody is listening to us.

“If it is a federal road, Governor Obaseki should inform the federal government about it. How will you feel schools are writing examinations and your children are not able to go to school because of bad roads?”

A message to the Head of Road Maintenance of the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA) in Edo state, Ben Olisa is yet to be replied as at the time of filing this report.

Meanwhile, bus drivers mostly those who ply the Benin-New Lagos road, withdrew their services over alleged extortion by personnel of the Edo State Traffic Management Agency (EDSTMA) and Public Works Volunteers (PUWOV).