The Federal Road Emergency Road Maintenance Agency (FERMA) has commenced repairs of federal roads in Abia State, News About Nigeria reports.
The Federal Road Maintenance Engineer in charge of Abia State, Festus Okafor, disclosed this to newsmen in the state on Thursday.
He noted that three federal roads, including the Aba-Azumini-Akwa Ibom Road, Umuahia-Bende-Ohafia Road, and Uturu-Mile, will benefit from the repairs, adding that other roads will be worked on when the agency receives funds.
Okafor, who maintained that the repairs are in line with the ‘Renewed Hope Agenda’ of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, stressed that the repairs were to make federal roads in the state passable without stress and make life stress-free for motorists and commuters in the state.
He explained that the repairs and patch works were being executed through direct labour and appealed to commuters in the state to be patient with the agency, assuring that other federal roads in the state will also receive attention based on the availability of resources.
According to him, the delays in intervention are usually caused by the bureaucracy involved in approvals concerning those that require contracts.
“The on-going patchwork started two weeks ago and it is part of our proactive efforts to avoid further damage on the roads by arresting the situation early.
“We have washouts threatening to cut some roads, especially Umuahia-Bende Road. We have done quick interventions through direct labour.
“We have also done some patchwork on Aba-Azumini Road and Uturu-Mile 2—Ebonyi Border Road—to keep them motorable and reduce hardship on motorists.
“More federal roads will receive attention as we get more funds. We are waiting for more funds to enable us to tackle massive failures on federal roads in the state,” he stated.
