Otuoke-Onuebum road in Ogbia Local Government Area of Bayelsa has been taken over by flood, as vehicles now pass through Elebele road, a longer distance, the News Agency of Nigeria reports.
NAN reports that Otuoke is the hometown of former President Goodluck Jonathan.
A staff of the Federal University Otuoke, FUO, Mr Clever Ogbodi told NAN in Otuoke on Friday that passengers were paying N400 instead of N250 from Otuoke to Yenagoa.
Ogbogi appealed to the Bayelsa government to come to the aide of the community for the sake of FUO students, who were directly affected.
“This was how it happened in October 2012 when the flood took over the whole community, but up till now, there was no proper preventive measure put in place by the government.
“We are expecting the government to come up with necessary measures to mitigate future occurrence, but it is a matter of regret that such measures are not in place.
“I am calling on all relevant authorities to look into the matter because we cannot be experiencing this terrible situation every year,” he said.
Mr Azibator Omonibo, a passenger wondered why the flood continued after the intervention fund that was given to the state in 2012 to tackle it.
She said that the people were suffering and they could not do anything because the government was not ready to live up to its responsibility of preventing flood and rehabilitating the road properly.
A taxi driver plying the road, Mr Kalawole Adebutu, said that the road was already in a bad shape before the flood submerged it.
The driver said it was a yearly occurrence with no solution.
He implored the Federal Government to come to the assistance of the people of Bayelsa since the state government had neglected the road over the years.
Adebutu said that the youth in the community were the ones sand filling the road, “the commercial drivers are paying them from the little profit they are making,” he said.
NAN
