Residents of Ikot Uduak lament deplorable road

Some Residents of Ikot Uduak, a community plagued by erosion in Calabar Municipal Council Area of Cross River State have lamented their inability to drive in or exit their houses because of the bad roads worsened by the heavy down-pour which has washed the laterite into their homes. They are asking officials of the CRS – NEWMAP to come for an inspection of the area to ascertain the degree of damage on the road.

A resident who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of backlash from officials of the Cross River State Nigeria Erosion and Watershed Management Project (CRS – NEWMAP) said “The contractor was paid by the world bank but the contractor has abandoned the project, the road is washed away due to the Erosion. No vehicle goes out from the area due to the bad road”.

Although the palliative work to remedy the gully menace has abated to a reasonable extent, since illegal sand mining is still ongoing in the area, the government should lay asphalt on the road to stop water from washing away the sand into the drains thereby eroding the surfaces which have led to the collapse of the gutter walls. The resulting effect according to him is rendering the road unmotorable. He called on the relevant agencies to come to their rescue in order to mitigate their suffering in the vicinity of Assemblies of God in Calabar.

An effort by LENS to talk to officials of CRS-NEWMAP in their State Housing office was naught at the time of filing this report.

By: Archibong Emmanuel
(Snr. Reporter)