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30.03.2007 General News

Zabzugu Youth Protest Over Bad Roads

30.03.2007 LISTEN
By Yakubu Abdul-Majeed, Zabzugu

The youth of Zabzugu, in the Northern Region, are complaining about the poor state of roads in the township.

They say it has taken the government and the district assembly too long a time to tar the roads in the township, arguing that the roads of all the district capitals except that of Zabzugu, have been tarred.

Lodging the complaint to Alhaji Mustapha Ali, the Regional Minister, during a visit to the area on Monday, they called on the sector minister to sanction UNISCO, Company Limited for causing harm to the people of the area, by leaving ditches and gutters uncovered resulting in a number of children and the aged falling into them and fracturing their links.

They lamented that some of the aged could no longer observe their dawn prayers in the mosques while others are forced to lock themselves in the rooms after sunset for fear of falling into the open gutters and injuring themselves.

They alleged that the gutters had been left opened for the past four yours and that the contractor abandoned the work only two months after commencing it.

The youth also appealed to the government to do something about the Yendi-Zabzugu road, which they said, is the only road linking the people to the other part of the country.

They said the tarring of the road would facilitate government’s efforts at reducing poverty in rural areas as it would enable the farmers to transport their far produce to the marketing centres for a good deal.

They pointed out that many of their farm produce particularly perishable goods often get rotten for lack of vehicles to cart them to nearby markets as some car owners have warned their drivers against using the road.

They added that the Metro buses which used to ply the road have withdrawn their services because of the bad nature of the road compelling them to resort to the use of cargo trucks.

The Regional Minister, Alhaji Mustapha Ali Idris, in his response, said efforts were being made to tar roads in all district capitals in the country.

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