Worried by the long stretch of bad roads, lack of drainage and epileptic power supply, some residents of Lokogoma District have sought the intervention of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike.
Speaking on behalf of the Residents of Lokogoma District Concern, George Agbakahi and Ibrahim Ndaaba, in a statement yesterday, complained about the yearly fatalities recorded during the rainy season as a result of lack of effective drainage in the district.
They noted that in 2018, the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA) carried out a review of the district infrastructure design, but nothing has been done.
According to them, the world class hospital developed by the Federal Government, the Afreximbank and the University of Oxford in the district to serve as a referral hospital, and stem medical tourism, might be commissioned without support infrastructure.
“There is currently no presence of government at all levels in the district, be it Federal, FCDA or AMAC.
“There have been fatalities during the rains because of lack of effective drainage in the district. A typical example was during the period between 2016 and 2018, when a father was swept away with his son in an attempt to drive through the storm water immediately after a heavy rainfall in the area.
“This avoidable accident drew protest from residents of the district. The FCDA in response carried out some palliative works, which included the construction of a 200-metre road from the district junction, and a drainage channel around the estate area, the venue of the incident.
“About 2018, the FCDA carried out a holistic review of the district infrastructure design under the supervision of late Umoh, the incumbent deputy director, who was in charge of engineering services.
“Unfortunately, no progress of work was recorded on completion of the review.
“The world class hospital jointly being developed by the Federal Government, the Afreximbank and the University of Oxford in the Lokogoma district to serve as a referral hospital, and stem medical tourism among top government officials may be commissioned with no support infrastructure.
“Your Excellency sir, the above are some of the pertinent and cardinal issues that are affecting the Lokogoma district. It is our firm belief, as rightly captured by your mission statement, the the FCT will be restored to the modern city that it ought to be, and that if the above observations are considered by you and worked upon, Lokogoma would be a great example of a modern district in the FCT.
“The socio-economic benefits the above observations would have on our district cannot be over emphasised. It is enormous, and would serve as a revenue generation district to all tiers of government in Nigeria.
“Your excellency sir, our prayers are for the following: Development of grade A internal district roads, service and interconnecting highways (the road from Gudu to Apo- the Prince Ebeano Supermarket Road), good drainage system, street lighting, markets, schools, hospital, and if possible, the proposed Lokokoma junction flyover already captured in the district infrastructure master plan.
“It is our prayer that the government ably guided by you would cause an urgent intervention in our beloved district,” the statement read.