By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
Blockade mounted by tanker drivers to call attention to bad roads is hindering the movement of food trucks through Niger State and, as a result, farm produce from the North are being wasted and supply affected in the South.
This is happening amid the rising prices of food items, including that of bread which has gone up by N100 in the past two months alone – as well as cooking gas which has more than doubled in price in eight months.
Trailer drivers have blocked all the entry and exit points around Minna, a in protest that started on Friday in Bida and continued on Saturday with a blockade in Lambata.
The roadblock got worse on Sunday when the drivers blocked farmlands and communities to ensure no vehicle would enter or leave the state.
It led to the loss of perishable agricultural goods worth millions of naira, per The Nation.
The drivers urged the Niger State government to reopen the Bida-Minna road, saying they would not suspend their protest until the road is opened.
They expressed regret that the state government has blocked the Minna-Bida road in the past six months, rerouting them to the dangerous Bida-Lapai-Lambata road.
Niger obtains $86.64m loan to build roads
The government said the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) has approved a $86.64 million for it to construct and upgrade the 82-kilometre Minna-Bida road being handled by Dantata and Sawoe Company.
The roads into Bida which are blocked include the Gbazhi area before the emir’s palace, Esso, Siriku junction, Bida-Kontagora junction in Mokwa, and some streets.
Residents overwhelmed by a surge in traffic have blocked some alternative routes and stranded motorists lament their inability to meet commitments due to the blockages.
But the state government said opening the Minna-Bida road is not an option because of the huge amount of money spent on its repair.
Information and Strategy Commissioner Muhammad Sani Idris said heavy-duty vehicles would damage the repaired sections of the road, and trailer drivers cannot hold the government to ransom by demanding the opening of the road.
“The Governor Abu Sani Bello administration is determined that the road construction must go on and, as such, opening the Minna-Bida road to heavy-duty vehicles is not an option for now, for that would destroy everything the government has done and taxpayers’ money would be wasted redoing what was already done,” Idris said in a statement.
The National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN) Niger State chapter and some civil society organisations (CSOs) have given the Nigeria Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO), tanker and trailer drivers’ associations 48 hours to vacate the roads in the state or face massive civil action.
“The once acclaimed most peaceful and hospitable state in Nigeria has been thrown into a state of chaos and mundane situations by the activities of NARTO, PTDAN and Trailer Drivers’ Association with the blockade of the Suleja-Lambata-Bida roads for four days now,” state NYCN Chairman Bellow Sheriff said in Minna.
“The implication of this heinous act by these drivers is that they have constituted themselves not only as a nuisance but as a government within government, blocking and stampeding major highways at the slightest provocation.”
Talks to reopen the roads
State NARTO Chairman Hassan Shiroro, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that the association is discussing with representatives of the federal and state governments and security agencies on how to resolve the matter.
Nigerian Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO) National President Lawal Othman beamed a ray of hope on the blockade.
Othman told The Nation that having spoken with Niger State Governor Sani Bello through Kebbi State Governor Atiku Bagudu, he is certain that there would be solution in the next 24 to 48 hours.
He said NARTO is in constant touch with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to resolve the impasse.
Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) National President Abubakar Maigandi urged the federal government to open the road from Bida to Minna as an alternative to the blockade at Lambata.
Maigandi said the blockade has caused “monumental loss” to the economy, but explained that the action was taken to compel the federal government to repair the road.