Travellers Stranded In Taraba Over Collapse Bridge

Despite lamentations by motorists and travellers over the collapsed Namnai Bridge along Jalingo-Wukari federal highway in Taraba State, heavy downpour have once again washed off the alternative route created by the villagers, leaving road users stranded at the bank of River Namnai on Wednesday.

Recall that Taraba State governor, Agbu Kefas, had recently visited the site of the collapsed Namnai Bridge, where he said that the state government was ready to take over reconstruction of the collapsed bridge.

LEADERSHIP also reliably gathered that the state government through the Ministry of Works awarded the contract for reconstruction of the bridge to Cloneburge Construction Company at the cost over N19bn.

While at the site, Kefas told motorists and travellers that the state government was going to provide an alternative route for them pending the reconstruction of the bridge, a promise that was not fulfilled before the return of the heavy downpour on Tuesday night, which washed away the makeshift bridge constructed by locals as an alternative.

LEADERSHIP Correspondent to the site of the bridge in the early hours of Wednesday discovered that the alternative wooden route constructed by the villagers was completely washed off by the Tuesday night heavy downpour, leaving motorists and travellers stranded at both sides of River Namnai.

Our correspondent also discovered that youths from the area were carrying persons and travellers on their backs to cross to both sides of the river while the motorists were making a detour with empty vehicles to their points of departure.

“We have no option than to return to Jalingo, our passengers are crossing on people’s back, we have no alternative means to cross, so we have to return to Jalingo,” said Mr. Tony Abume, a commercial driver, who spoke to our correspondent at the river bank.

Also, when contacted, a youth leader, Mr. Iliasu Namnai, who organised his fellow villagers to help take the passengers across the river, told our correspondent that it was not a money-making venture but rather to render assistance to the stranded travellers to reach their destinations.

“Although we are taking little money from the passengers to take them across the river. Our aim is not the money but to assist so that people will be able to get to their destinations. We are calling on Governor Agbu Kefas to come and fulfill his earlier promise by constructing the bridge, we are seriously overwhelmed with the challenge of crossing the passengers,” Iliasu stated in Hausa language.

Efforts to speak with the State’s Commissioner for Works, Mr. Moseh Luka, failed as his phone lines were not going through at press time and when our Correspondent visited his office, he was also not on seat at the time.