Hope in Governance Restored to Abia’s ‘Forgotten Community’ as Otti Flags off 13.9km Road

Emmanuel Ugwu-Nwogo in Umuahia


The people of Okporoenyi in Bende Local Government Area of Abia State have heaved a huge sigh of relief and rekindled their hope in government following the flag-off of the access road into the community abandoned for decades.

In Okporoenyi, which is regarded as a “forgotten community” due to inaccessibility, people dread burying their departed ones during the rainy season as ambulance drivers shun conveying bodies to the community due to its miry terrain.

But on Thursday, Governor Alex Otti flagged off the reconstruction of the 13.9-kilometre  Onuinyang-Okporoenyi-Oboro-Ikwuano Road thereby opening up the neglected community and connecting it to others.

At the event held at Central School Okporoenyi, Otti pledged to ensure that the road, which traversies communities in central and northern senatorial districts, would be completed on schedule.

“We made a commitment at the inception of this administration that not a single community in Abia shall be neglected in our determined push to revive the levers of our economy and create an environment that supports the dreams and aspirations of our hard working population,” he said.

He explained the strategic and economic importance of the 13.9 km rural road, saying that thousands of farmers would be linked to the urban markets within and outside Abia.

According to him, the apparent fixation of his government with road infrastructure was
borne out of the fact that it regards roads as catalysts to economic well-being of the people.

“In the new Abia, we conceive roads as pathways to prosperity for present and future generations,” he said.

Otti stated that his administration was not just building roads but constructing high quality road networks “to connect all parts of the state”.

He explained that this policy “is founded on the conviction that there are abundant human and material resources to be harnessed by opening the roads that were hitherto abandoned through systemic neglect.”

The Abia chief executive lauded the communities in the neglected corridor for their resilience in sustaining their agricultural practices despite the dire situation they were subjected to over the years.

“The communities around this corridor are central to the state’s agricultural development framework having been renowned for the quality and quantity of their farm produce including cocoa, cassava, rice cereals and vegetables,” he noted.

In their respective remarks, the member representing Bende South State Constituency, Hon. Emmanuel Ndubuisi and the Deputy Chief of Staff, Office of the Deputy Governor, Mr. Chijioke Nwankwo, expressed their gratitude to Governor Otti for giving the neglected communities a sense of belonging.

The Commissioner for Works, Otumchere Oti, said that the road was divided into two sections with a contractor assigned to each section. He stated that the contract duration is six months, adding that the project is an asphaltic concrete road with culverts, drainage system and solar street lights.

The Mayor of Ikwuano LGA, Dr. Anthony Nwaubani and his Bende counterpart, Deacon Uwabunkeonye Bassey thanked the governor for extending his infrastructure projects to the rural communities.

The traditional rulers of the benefiting communities, Eze Ossy Iromantu of Okporoenyi, Eze Innocent Ezeala of Ibe Uzo Amawom-Oboro and Chief Sunny Chigbu of Nkalunta, all expressed their joy that their link road would be fixed at long last.

According to the royal fathers, the Onuinyang-Okporoenyi-Oboro-Ikwuano Road was last constructed in 1952 by the defunct Eastern region under the premiership of Dr. Michael Okpara.