Chukwudike Ndubeze, Awka
The Management of Federal College of Education (Technical), Umunze in Orumba South Local Government Area, Anambra State, has passionate appealed to the Federal Government to intervene and save staff and students of the institution from impending disaster resulting from heavy downpour which wreaked havoc on the newly constructed road leading to the institution.
A trending viral video on different social media platforms, had revealed how the road, constructed only a few months ago by an unnamed federal contractor, was in a terrible state after flood swept aside its connecting bridge leaving a scary gully mark across the road.
A resident of the area simply identified as Anthony, told Ikengaonline, that people woke in the early hours of Sunday to discover that the road had been cut off by the flood.
“It rained heavily on Saturday night, and we believe that the flood was much to have caused the heavy destruction on the road.
“It was the people that tried to pass through the road in the early hours of Sunday that first saw the destruction and alerted other members of the town to avoid following the route.”
According to him, “the downpour was the first heavy rain in the area since the completion of the road.”
He said, “the road was cut-off from both ends and part of the bridge was wrecked by the heavy flood.”
Ikengaonline gathered that the access road was rehabilitated after the college management made several appeals to the Federal and State governments to intervene and save its long-suffering students on the road leading to its permanent site.
Former Anambra State Governor, Willie Obiano, carried out repair works on the beleaguered road after his promise in 2016, when he visited the college, to end the agony of the students and members of the public on the dilapidated road.
However, Ikengaonline gleaned from a statement issued by the College Public Relations Officer (PRO), Mr. Sam Otti, that further appeals by the College Management to the Ministerial Tenders Board saw to the approval and award of the rehabilitation of the road in July 2021, to Messrs Avenir Engineering Nigeria Ltd, with the Federal Ministry of Works, Awka as Supervisor of the project.
According to the statement, “the terms of contract did not include the reconstruction of the old bridge and drainage.
“The College Management prevailed on the Contractor to do palliative work on the bridge, pending the reconstruction work by the Federal Government.”
He regretted that the remedial efforts were overwhelmed by the ravaging flood.
Otti, who emphasized the import of the road to the college community said: “College Management will not relent in appealing for urgent help from the Federal Government to reconstruct the old bridge, fortify it’s iron bars and make it safe for commuters.”
He also stated that the management had issued an order restricting vehicular movements along the access road to avert loss of lives, and had advised both staff and students of the College to use the alternative route, until the problem is addressed.
