governor.
Jabbi Lamba – Belel road links Girei, Fufore and Maiha local government areas in Adamawa state as well as Nigeria and Cameroun border route. It was first constructed 39 years ago by the President Shehu Shagari administratin in 1982.
Since then, no rehabilitation has been done on the road. Times without numbers, recent administrations had released funds for the reconstruction of the road but contractors only worked for few kilometers and left the site.
Surprisingly, the present administration had, in June last year, approved the reconstruction of the road. But getting to one and half year now is no sign of starting the project.
In case you don’t know, Jabbi Lamba – Belel road. It is a route that links Jibiro to Malabu, the village that the wife of Mr. President, Hajiya Aishatu Buhari, and the incumbent senator representing Adamawa central, Hajiya Aishatu Dahiru Ahmad Binani, hail from.
The road also connects Farang, Konkol to Boloko, the home of the renowned mathematics professor, the third Chancellor of Ahmadu Bello University, former Director, Central Bank of Nigeria and former minister of defence and internal affairs as well as two-term senator, Professor Iya Abubakar.
The road links my village, Konkol, the centre of commerce of Maiha LGA with Belel, where Brigadier-General Muhammad Mana (retired), former military administrator of Plateau state who also represented the Adamawa North senatorial district at the National Assembly twice, hails from there. Belel is also the home town of Senator Muhammad Umar Jibrilla Bindow, a one time senator and governor.
From Belel, the road bypasses to Sorau and Mayo Nguli, the headquarters of Maiha local government area.
Despite having the above five prominent personalities in these affected areas, Jabbi Lamba-Belel road is in horrendous, ramshackle and tumbledown condition.
On this road, seven out of the eight major bridges have broken which compelled travellers to use seven canoes and seven different cars to reach their destination in rainy season. In this process, many people got drowned. Apart from risking life, the less than 100 kilometers journey consumes three to five hours instead of an hour. It is a road while plying it, you need not only transport fare but money for medication also because of the shakings and knocks due to the numerous potholes on the road.
Sick people and pregnant women are the ones who suffer the most on the road. Apart from women who had miscarriage on the road, hundreds of persons died while being transported to Yola, the state capital, for medication.
Economically, the people of these areas are losing their cars and consumable and non consumable items to accidents. During my visit to the area a couple of weeks, I found many trailers tumbledown with property worth millions of naira. It is a journey to hell!
The road brings untold hardship because commodities are skyrocketed.
Most of those I interviewed revealed that the only dream they have is seeing the road reconstructed. By this, they will know that democracy and government is existing..
We, therefore, call for urgent intervention in order to ameliorate the sufferings of the people residing along Jabbi Lamba to Belel Sorau road..
Bilyaminu Gambo Kong-kol, Mass Communication Department, Bayero University, Kano[email protected]
