At Tatabu village, commuters plying the Ilorin–Minna road have to engage in a tugof-war to cross the river where a bridge has been swept off for close to one month, reports AIDELOJE OJO
Mallam Sani Abubakar, a commercial driver, engaged the gear of his truck, pressed the acceleration pedal, but there was no movement as the tyres got stuck in the mud formed around River Tatabu. Th e bridge was swept off about a month ago, following a surging fl ood occasioned by a heavy downpour. Youth volunteers and stranded passengers tied ropes to the front of the truck and pulled with the energy often demonstrated in a tug-of- war, while others supported from the rear.
A tough spectacle to behold as the rescuers’ legs were splattered with mud which had also held down the truck over 10 hours or so penultimate Wednesday, along the Jebba- Mokwa road in Niger state. Abubakar’s experience was one among hundreds of other motorists and road users, making frantic eff orts to cross the river with the assistance of the locals who had improvised local bridges for the stranded travellers wanting to continue with their journey at all cost. Business time Our reporter who visited the scene, reports that as typical of the Nigerian system, the appalling situation has been turned into a brisk business by the locals.
For instance, Blueprint observes that cars pay ‘toll gate fees’ of about N500 to cross through the improvised bridge made by the locals, while light trucks using another improvised bridge cough out as much as N1000. What is more? Th e locals’ fortunes amidst the travellers’ misfortunes are further enhanced in a way, as cars and small trucks offl oad passengers and wares before crossing the bridges.
To complete the circle, passengers with heavy loads ‘settle’ the Continued on the next page Special Report At Tatabu village, commuters plying the Ilorin–Minna road have to engage in a tugof-war to cross the river where a bridge has been swept off for close to one month, reports AIDELOJE OJO We had lots of hardship as hospitable people trying to satisfy our visitors, but the situation was getting out of hand, so we decided to construct alternative bridge that can take small cars. We bought stones and planks to construct the bridge which has helped tremendously at least for now. boys to ferry their wares across for reloading at a cost. For instance, traders with bags of grains and other heavy materials pay between N50 and N100, depending on their bargaining power with Mai doka kaya (load carriers.) One of the carriers, Musa Mamman, told our correspondent that he makes about N5000 on the average everyday carrying heavy grain bags on his head across the river.
“You cannot expect us to carry these heavy bags for free, it requires lots of energy and we have to eat enough, but food around here is very costly. So we charge minimum fees on each bag we carry”, Musa said, explaining that he relocated to the spot alongside 10 other hefty boys from Jebba and Mokwa towns, to engage in the brisk business. Emergence of mini-market However, while Mamman and his boys are exerting their energies to earn quick money, a group of women formed a minimarket few yards from the bank of the river, displaying various edibles , including breads, baskets of dried fi sh, pure water and fried yam. A bread seller who simply identifi ed herself as Mrs. Yemi from Jebba, told Blueprint that market was not bad in the area, especially as hungry stranded passengers often opt to eat bread and drink water in the absence of solid food. According to her, the prices of her breads range from N200 to N400 depending on the sizes.
Checks however revealed that prices of all items sold in the vicinity are 100% higher than normal market prices in nearest towns. Similarly, makeshift motor parks are fast springing up at both Mokwa and Jebba ends of the road from where passengers who made it across the river on foot, board vehicles to other cities in Niger and Kwara states, depending on their destination. Community to the rescue Speaking in an interview with our correspondent, an elder of Tatabu village coordinating youths activities at the bridge site, Yanda Alhaji, said the village has been swallowed and overwhelmed by the presence of stranded visitors, adding that the villagers had to improvise wooden bridge to evacuate stranded people to ease pressure and avoid starvation in the village. According to him, “two to
three days after the collapse of the bridge, the infl ux of stranded motorists into our village became almost unbearable because of the suffi cient food and drinkable water that abound in our environment. “We had lots of hardship as hospitable people trying to satisfy our visitors, but the situation was getting out of hand, so we decided to construct alternative bridge that can take small cars. We bought stones and planks to construct the bridge which has helped tremendously at least for now.”
He however expressed fear that the improvised bridge would be swept away anytime there is heavy down pour unless government comes to the rescue immediately. Th e community leader therefore called on the federal government to, as a matter of urgency mobilise to site and reconstruct the bridge while providing alternative route for travellers. No government presence However, this fear is further reinforced when considered against the backdrop of the absence of government’s presence at the site, a situation that has compounded the agony of stranded travellers at the spot. As at the time of this report, the collapsed bridge is yet to get the desired attention from government. Th e only crane seen at the foot of the collapsed bridge was hired by private individual to retrieve a trapped fuel tanker from the bridge. In addition, there was also no security presence at the scene except for a patrol team from the FRSC Mokwa sector that zoomed in and out without really making any impact on the agonised travellers.
Th e FRSC team leader(names withheld) declined interview with our correspondent on grounds that he was not allowed to speak to press, but described the situation as horrible. Further checks revealed that it had become diffi cult to enforce traffi c rules around the area as vehicles carry double of passenger capacity in addition to overloaded boots. NGSG raises concern However, Niger state government appeared to be worried over the deteriorating humanitarian situation cropping up in the area, prompting its offi cials to visit the spot.
But this is yet to produce tangible result. Lamenting during a visit to the scene few days after the incident, the state Commissioner for Information, Mr. Jonathan Vatsa told journalists that all federal roads in the state have become dead traps. He said, “all the federal roads in the state have not been given any attention for the past 20 years while successful administration paid lip service to the deplorable condition of these roads,” Vatsa noted. Vatsa argued that there was no guarantee of safety of lives on these roads, adding that what had happened has worsened the already bad situation that commuters face on these roads for years. In appealing for urgent intervention of federal government, the commissioner said, “we don’t have the capacity to carry out the work on this collapsed bridge, considering the level of this destruction done.
We are therefore calling on the federal government to urgently intervene by awarding the work to a competent company that can do a good work within the shortest period”. Traders’ plight Apparently corroborating the commissioner’s position, a grain trader, Hajiya Rasheedat told our correspondent that she has been stranded for two days at the river side with over 30 bags of grains on the way to Ilorin from Minna. She expressed disappointment over the negligence of government in refusing to come to the aid of stranded travellers.
Th e trader stressed the need for government to provide alternative and emergency routes while working on the main bridge that should be awarded immediately. “Most of our goods have perished here and yet we cannot sight any government offi cial to assist us in this diffi cult situation,” she further lamented. Why FG must act However, while the villagers in the area have volunteered energies, and resources to assist in managing the looming humanitarian crisis in the Tatabu bridge collapse area, it is expedient for both the federal and state governments to initiate solution to the problem without further delay.
Th e fi rst sign that shows a traveller that all is not well is the absence of heavy trailers for which the road is known. Th e trailers most of which are conveying petroleum products from Lagos to the North, are said to be diverting to Lokoja road to avoid the Tatabu village debacle. Looming humanitarian crisis Th e fact that the road is the only link between South West and the North from that axis, is a clear pointer that government should not sleep over the incident. Further delay, some respondents posited, could turn the spot into the hoodlums den. Besides, what is happening at the moment, they further contended, is a looming humanitarian crisis.
