Follow Us on Google
•Ozu Abam, 23 other communities in Abia send SOS to FG, Otti over collapsing facility
By Uche Usim
Economic paralysis stares Ozu Abam and 23 other communities in Arochukwu Local Government Area of Abia State in the face, as Igwu bridge, a critical infrastructure linking them to other parts of the state, is on the verge of collapse.
To prevent what seems a looming humanitarian crisis, they have sent a distress call to the Federal Government, Governor Alex Otti and parliamentary representatives, appealing for an urgent intervention.
The overpass, barely some meters long, is also called Omenuko bridge and was constructed several decades ago.
Unfortunately, it has been starved of regular rehabilitation and currently succumbing to the battering of the elements.
The communities, predominantly farmers, with poor social infrastructure, are worried that if the bridge is not immediately repaired, they risk being isolated from modern civilisation.
Captain Chibuike Usim, President General, Ozu Abam Development Union, who amplified calls for an urgent rehabilitation of the platform at a recent town hall meeting in Ozu Abam, explained that the communities rely heavily on Igwu bridge for economic survival.
He said: “We need urgent assistance in fixing this bridge. Our people are mainly farmers and this bridge is the only link to various communities and other parts of the state. They pass through it to sell their wares and transact other businesses. We don’t have water transportation here, nor do we have a rail system. It is by road and this bridge is a major link.
“It’s a critical infrastructure that needs urgent repairs. We are calling on the federal, state government and our representatives in the Senate and House of Representatives to step in and address this matter. “We don’t want this bridge to eventually collapse because of the disastrous effects it will have on the socio-economic lives of our people,” he pleaded.
Motorists and commuters generally have also appealed to the members representing Arochukwu/Ohafia federal constituency and the Ministry of Works to address the deteriorating condition of the bridge.
“Whenever I’m in a cab and we’re approaching Igwu bridge, I close my eyes and say the Lord’s prayer. I do this always because it’s only God that has been saving us. The base of the bridge is eroded. If you’re in a heavy car, you’d feel the vibration. It’s a scary thing,” Ann Awa, an Ozu Abam resident lamented.
A commercial taxi driver plying the Ozu Abam-Ohafia corridor, who identified himself as Cletus, said it was disheartening that the bridge has been left to deteriorate for far too long.
“We commercial drivers know that the bridge is collapsing but we pray it does not. But can’t we can’t live in grace forever. Let’s do the right thing so that the wrong things won’t happen.
“So many lives have been lost already because it’s after a bend and has no railings. Some vehicles have plunged into the river. It shouldn’t be. The government should help us fix this short bridge”, he pleaded.
Ibem Onwuka, another road user, shared disturbing photos of the collapsing bridge on Facebook, amplifying the urgent need for urgent repairs, even at a remediation level, to avert a looming catastrophe.
Dwellers in the affected suburban communities dread rainfall as it worsens erosion being the greatest threat to Igwu bridge.
Aside from the bridge, erosion is another menace tormenting Ozu Abam and other communities around. It has snatched swathes of land hitherto earmarked for farming. Also affected are residential areas and calls for help have reached a crescendo.
With diminishing land for farming and the fragile Igwu bridge, Ozu Abam and other communities are already feeling economically isolated.
They are anxiously waiting for the government’s response to their plea, hoping that prompt action will be taken to avert a potential disaster and ensure the safety of lives and properties in the area.
Ozu Abam, one of the largest in the Abam Onyerubi clan, is known for the cultivation of crops like cassava, yam, maize, and cocoyam, cocoa, palm oil, and rubber.
People of Abam are enthusiastic conservators of their cultural heritage.
They host annual festivals like Iri ji (new yam festival), gba Ekpe, and Ịgba Ọsọ, ancestral celebrations wrapped around the enduring age grade system.
