A former Nigerian Ambassador to Norway, Sweden and Denmark, Godknows Igali, has criticised the Minister of Works, David Umahi, over the poor state of major roads in the Niger Delta, saying he sometimes feels like “breaking” his television when he listens to him speak about road repairs.
Igali said the condition of the roads did not match the claims being made by the minister about ongoing rehabilitation projects.
The former envoy spoke during a live appearance on Africa Independent Television (AIT), where he expressed frustration over the state of the East-West Road and the Benin-Asaba corridor.
Igali, who said he frequently travels across the region, described the situation on the roads as alarming.
“When I listen to the Minister of Works sometimes, I feel like breaking my television. Because I move around every time. I had to come in from Port Harcourt to be able to have this conversation with you. And the roads are not there,” he stated.
He said the poor condition of the roads had turned short journeys into hours-long trips.
ALSO READ: Trans-Sahara Highway 40 per cent complete — Umahi
“Even so-called East-West Road is not in order. You can’t go from Sapele to Warri. It used to take us 40, 45 minutes. Today it takes about three hours from Sapele to Benin. One hour now takes about three or four hours,” Igali said.
The former ambassador also pointed to recent protests over the condition of the Benin-Asaba road, saying residents had become frustrated with the situation.
“And the other day, just last week, we saw people demonstrating that the road from Asaba to Benin is so bad. And people came out demonstrating,” he remarked.
Igali described the situation as an “injustice”, noting that the Niger Delta remains a major source of Nigeria’s revenue.
“So the roads, and this is where the money comes from, it is the height of injustice. We are not asking for more than we should have. We are just saying be fair, be equitable, be just, be fair to all such people,” he added.
He also warned that Nigerians were becoming more conscious of government actions and were no longer willing to remain silent.
“Our people are watching. No, people are now wiser. They are reasoning, they are wiser. The political bandwidth is now wider for people to reason and participate.”
Igali’s criticism followed recent protests and traffic disruptions along the Benin-Asaba Expressway over its deteriorating condition.
Following the protests, Umahi inspected the road and blamed the concessionaire for removing more than 30 kilometres of asphalt without replacing it promptly.
The Federal Government has since commenced moves to revoke the concession, while President Bola Tinubu ordered the immediate, full-scale reconstruction of the affected sections.