Member of the House of Representatives, representing Aguata Federal Constituency of Anambra State, Hon. Chukwuma Umeoji, has complained about the poor state of infrastructures in the South East.
Lending his voice to the proposed reintroduction of tollgate on federal roads, the lawmaker said; “The South East has the lowest Federal presence compared to other zones. The Federal roads in the zone have collapsed with a heavy toll on human life, goods and services.
“The Southeast has the least allocation of funds for road maintenance and re-construction but ranks highest in terms of proposed road taxation.
“What is the moral justification for tolling on roads that are not motorable?” he asked.
He went on to say that; “Various government projects are done in total isolation of the Southeast. Even the railway line project is structured to exclude the zone”.
“The zone is completely cut off from land, sea and air. The Enugu Airport is closed down, the Onitsha inland waterways are not functional. This infrastructural policy is to punish theSouth East and stifle development”.
The toll gates, would be “theatres of
psychological and mental torture on the people and constitute the arena for humiliation, intimidation and extortion,” he concluded.
