The government of the state of Anambra has traveled to the section of the Onitsha-Owerri expressway that has been abandoned after it was recently severed due to erosion.

A group representing the state government, which included the Chief of Staff to Governor Soludo, Ernest Ezeajughi; the Commissioners for Works, Ifeanyi Okoma; and Environment, Felix Odimegwu; and the Press Secretary to the Governor, Christian Aburime, who were all present at the locations, pleaded with the federal government to step in and help.

Senator Victor Umeh, who represents the district of Anambra Central in the Senate, paid a visit to the location during the past weekend and made a commitment to inform the National Assembly of the latest development in an effort to get the attention of the federal government.

In addition to this, he advocated for the declaration of an emergency regarding erosion in the South East, stating that the threat of erosion was decreasing the already limited landmass that was present in this region.

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During his tour, Ezeajughi bemoaned the fact that Anambra State alone was home to over 1,000 active erosion sites. He also bemoaned the fact that there was an immediate need to address the erosion of the Onitsha-Owerri Road, as the passage of goods and people will be halted if the other half of the road caves in.

He stated that there are more than a thousand active erosion sites in the state of Anambra. This is only one of many examples. We are responding to a critical situation.

Even though it is the responsibility of the federal government to fix the problem, we are not waiting for them to arrive because the erosion wash-off on the Onitsha-Owerri route caused by Oba is such a serious catastrophe.

“The people who are going through the hardship are nd’ Anambra; as a result, the government of Anambra State has begun intervention to arrest the situation before other measures are taken.”

“We are in talks with the Federal Ministry of Works and the Federal Road Maintenance Agency, FERMA, and they are already on it,” said the Commissioner for Works, Okoma. “They are already on it,” he added. However, this is going to be a lengthy procedure.

“We are powerless to do anything else, so we have relocated a contractor who will carry on with the second objective, which is to prevent further mudslides.”