By Richard Emmanuel Jalingo
Residents of Jalingo, capital of Taraba State at the weekend, took over the streets of the capital calling on the Minister of Power Engr., Saleh Mamman, to use his influence to ensure the completion of abandoned Numan Jalingo road project, lamenting that the Minister has not attracted any project into the state since his appointment last year.
The protesters with #fixNumanJalingo Road placards appealed to the Minister to lead a delegate to the Minister of Work, Babatunde Raji Fashola, to discuss about the plights of Tarabans using the highway.
Numan Jalingo road is one of the major roads that link Taraba to Adamawa, Gombe and the entire North-East geo-political region.
“We would be glad if the Minister of Power will meet his colleague in the Ministry of Works over the project and discuss with him in the interest of the state. If this the only thing he will do for Tarabans because since his appointment as Minister he has not attracted any federal project to the state like his colleagues from other states,” a protester and a
Frontline Social media commentator, Daleehat Suleiman Bente, alleged that the Minister of Power has failed to push for the rehabilitation of Numan Jalingo Road which is in dire need of attention having been abandoned for several years.
“We should rather look at the Minister in his eyes and tell him that as our voice and representative in the Federal Executive Council he has failed to push for the rehabilitation of that road which is in dire need of attention having been abandoned dilapidated for several years.
“The other day I was reading on the official twitter handle Of Sheikh Isa Ali Pantami, the Minister of Communication and Digital Economy, where he was mentioning some notable road project which he helped lobbied for his state Gombe with the help of Minister of works and housing. If Engineer Saleh Mamman was up to the task, we won’t need this protest of calling for government attention on the road that connects Adamawa and Taraba State,” Bente said.
Collaborating Bente’s view, Abba Usman Jalingo, in a Social media post said “how I wish Hon. Sale Mamman will see this protest and do something needful during Federal Executive Council meeting or tactically approach his colleague Minister of works and housing. Let Numan-Jalingo road be fixed please.”
Another protester urged the Minister to raise the deplorable state of Numan-Jalingo road at the Federal Executive Council, saying that the Minister and other politicians in the state are feeling unconcerned because they and their families use private flights to Jalingo.
Ishaq Alkassim, Convener of the protest, while briefing newsmen after the protest, called on the president Muhammadu Buhari to probe the entire contract award process to unravel the circumstances leading to the abandoning of Numan Jalingo road project.
He recalled that the contract, which was awarded on July 24, 2017 to DEUX project Nig. Ltd at the cost of N11 billion to be completed within 20 months, had no performance from the contractor.
He said that the comatose 104-klm road had stagnated socio economic growth of the state. The convener also said that the road’s deplorable condition had turned motorists to soft targets for various armed militia.
Alkassim called on the Minister of Works, to address the “Sadiq situation” in which people of the area always feel frustrated when traveling on the road.
“Our eminent concern is the way the deplorable nature of Numan Jalingo road has brought frustration to the people of the area.
“Plying Numan Jalingo road has become such a traumatic experience that commuters agitate while their trip lasts.
“We are passionately calling on the President to intervene with the view to identifying where the problem that led to the abandoning of the project lies.
“We equally appeal to the Hon. Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola to consider the plight of Nigerians living from this part of the country,” Alkassim said.
Alhaji Nasiru Tafida, Member representing Jalingo 11 in the Taraba Assembly House of Assembly also called on the President and other representatives of the people to come to the aid of the people of the state.
He said the collective intervention was for the completion of the road. Tafida said that lack of access roads into the state had hampered development and economic growth of the state.
He regretted that the people of the state would perpetually be poor due to lack of social amenities that could attract investors to the state.
