The Niger State caucus of the National Assembly has decried the deplorable state of roads in the state.
The caucus comprising three senators and 10 members of the House of Representatives told journalists on Tuesday that the roads have gone from bad to worse following the heavy rains this year.
This came barely 24 hours after youth under the auspices of National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN) blocked the Suleja-Minna highway to protest the deplorable state of roads in the state. They carried placards with various inscriptions and vowed to continue their protest until their demands are met.
The angry youth also blocked the Bida-Minna road as motorists were forced to look for alternative routes into and out of the state.
The caucus was led by the Deputy Chief Whip, Aliyu Abdullahi, who stressed the importance of the roads, said he has lost two brothers to accidents on the roads in the last week. He also said heavy traffic experienced in the last two years has impacted negatively on the roads.
While calling for urgent action, the lawmaker said vehicles plying these roads are also overweight or overloading. “Some of them are designed for 30 or 40 tonnes but what we see is 60 to 90 tonnes,” he said.
“The essence is to call on the Federal Government in particular under the ministry of works and our father, Mr President. The bulk of these vehicles do not belong to Niger state but to Nigerians but the impact is felt by Nigerlites. What we are asking for is a state of emergency to be declared on these three roads- Minna to Suleja road, from Mokwa down to Kaduna and Bida to Lambata road,” he added.
