Calabar-Itu Highway: Akwa lbom Federal lawmakers must brief constituents after their tenure
Although, it is not our intension to bore us this week, but we strongly believe that, it is pertinent that, at the expiration of the legislative engagement of our ten (10) Representatives in the Green Chamber and three (3) Distinguished Senators in the Red Chamber of our National Assembly, they should, as a matter of accountability, brief us on their individual and collective lobbying activities in drawing our federal government attention to the deplorable condition of Calabar-ltu highway, built in the mid-1970s.
However, we are thinking that, there is need to assess the degree of influence our National Lawmakers have exerted on this all-important dual carriageway.
And by that, we mean their influences, and perhaps, how these have subsequently, lead to legislative outcomes from the National Assembly with respect to the nightmarish experience of this socio-economic highway.
Or, is it not a good thing that we, as a people, explore the potential influences of our National Lawmakers to this regards?
Anywhere, we cannot deny the fact that, our people plying Calabar-ltu highway have sorry tales to tell over the deplorable state of this highway.
Sadly, the highway, which was constructed in the mid-1970s, is now impassable in many sections. What a hardship experienced by our people? The road is not only a nightmare, but a death trap!
Unfortunately, Uyo to Calabar which used to be a journey of about an hour now takes up to eight hours. In fact, what is disheartening is that, some of our sons and daughters, who ply this road usually end up sleeping on the road, when there is any breakdown of heavy duty truck along the road.
It is heartbreaking, seeing how our people are being subjected to untold hardship, as if they committed a sin by sending our sons and daughters to the National Assembly to speak for us, and on behalf of us through ballot boxes.
Meanwhile, our ‘kpam kpam’ brother, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Ita Enang, is not helping matters at all.
Instead of assisting our sons and daughters in Abuja, as someone who had spent almost all of his life in the National Assembly, to bring this our demand home, yet, he is the very one acting as ‘a cork-in-the-wheel, diverting the attention of our federal government to this our nightmarish experience. May posterity judge us!
That out of the way, we want to use this medium to commend our Distinguished National Lawmakers for their exceptional contributions to the advancement of our state, through their legislative engagement and oversight functions in the National Assembly.
Yet, we want to say that, the reconstruction of the Calabar-ltu Dual Carriageway is much more dear to us too, considering its heavy duty economic impact to the South-south region of Nigeria. I rest my case!