Bida-Minna Road: Aggrieved APC members give FG, Niger Gov 5-day ultimatum to close road

By DANIEL ATORI, Minna

Few days after bowing to pressure from the Federal Government to rescind its decision on the closure of state-owned roads, the Niger State government has been given a five-day ultimatum by members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to close them once again in order to fast track the roads’ construction.

The aggrieved members of the party in the three local government areas affected by the road, while calling on the Federal Government to create alternative routes, however, disclosed that to avoid any drastic, but peaceful action by the restive youths and indeed the entire community the road should be closed to afford contractors carry out their work.

It should be noted that, the state government through the Chief of Staff to the Governor, Ibrahim Balarabe had vowed not to open the roads to articulated vehicles, saying: “We will not go back on the restriction order of heavy trucks plying the state-owned roads which took”.

However, the Niger State Governor Abubakar Sani Bello recently directed relevant agencies in the state to open up the closed roads to articulated vehicles that are carrying not more than 45,000 litres of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) and 35,000 tonnes of dry cargo after a meeting with the Federal Government.

The governor gave the directive when he briefed journalists shortly a meeting Chaired by the Chief of Staff to President Mohammadu Buhari, Inspector General of Police, the Director General of the Department of State Services, the Group Managing Director of the Nigeria National Petroleum Coorperation and the Minister of Works and Housing all in attendance.

But the APC members from Bida, Gbako and Kacha federal constituency led by its Secretary, Yahaya Mustapha in a statement made available to our Correspondent urged the state government to stand by its earlier pronouncement to close the road to all articulated vehicles.

According to him: “We are calling on the government to within five days between 20th and 24th of this month, September, 2020 close the roads to save our lives and provide the needed environment to face the rehabilitation of the road.

“We can no longer sit and watch our people suffer in silence nor tolerate glaring discomfort and contininuous but avoidable fatal accidents.” (New Telegraph)