It is seven days since Ogoni youths started protests, barricading the busy Eleme-Onne East-West road leading to over 50 companies in Rivers State.

Peoples Gazette learnt the demonstrators comprise of all the youth groups in local government areas of Ogoni origin. They are protesting the deplorable state of both sides of the roads that had killed hundreds of commuters and passers-by, including the Ogoni people over the years.

Many Rivers residents are applauding the action of the youths considering the billions of naira the government generates from the companies using the road.

The Gazette observed that section one to four of the Eleme-Onne East-West road has been a death trap for commuters as travellers are always scared while using the road alongside heavy-duty trucks from the companies.

Three weeks ago, a container while on motion fell and killed a teenager, plucking her eyes off, The Gazette learnt from multiple sources.

Williams Probel, leader of the Ogoni People Assembly told The Gazette that the death of the teenager is one of the too many recent incidents that triggered the protest.

“I was in my village, I saw people running, shouting and raising their hands. I learnt a container had fallen on a little girl at a bad spot. Before they remove the container, the girl’s body is flattened and her eyes have been plucked out,” Mr Probel said.

Describing the ugly constant occurrences on the road, Mr Probel said trucks, on numerous occasions, run into the bridge and a journey of 30 minutes takes close to six to 24 hours, especially on sections one to four of the road, adding that commuters are forced to use the Oyigbo road despite the high security risk in the area.

Vincent Gborsi, Community Development Chairman of Duburo Community in Khana LGA, lamented that Ogoni East-West Road has been bad since 1999 when the federal government last worked and stopped close to the trailer park, saying the federal government has been playing games with the construction of the road.

“We are saying that the FG must embark on the total construction of the road from trailer park axis where they stopped to the Eleme junction, and if not for anything but for our people, else we won’t leave the road,” Mr Vincent said.

He argued that if the federal government could expend about N900 billion on other roads, there should be no qualms in fixing the Ogoni highway which generates large chunk of revenue for the nation.

Blaming the activities of heavy duty trucks, Mr Vincent complained that the “roads would have served us but if not the heavy trucks that moves from one multinational to another.”

He said if the government is serious, they should mobilise contractors to the site and the youth will support them. “We are not fools.

“I don’t know if the government wants the bridge after refinery junction to collapse inside the river before they will know it is a death trap. Enough is Enough!”

On Friday, the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Goodswill Akpabio, announced that the federal government had released N2.5 billion for the repair of the road.

The Gazette learnt from sources that the construction company, RCC, as of Sunday morning had visited the protest ground, appealing to protesters to leave the road, saying payment had been made for the construction of the road.

But Mr Probel and other protesters including the Chairman of the Rivers State coalition of Civil Society organizations, Enefaa Georgewill, warned that if the road is not worked on as promised, the protest will continue.

“This time, we will shut down all the companies because we noticed some companies are still working,” Mr Probel added.

Mr Akpabio in a statement sent to The Gazette on Sunday morning appealed to the youth to leave section 3 of the Eleme-Onne East-West road to enable contractors to commence work, saying additional N2.5 billion has been released for compensation to property owners along the corridor.

The Eleme-Onne road also leads to Akwa-Ibom, Cross-Rivers, and the Imo States, The Gazette reports.