Auchi Youths Council (AYC) has cried out for help over a devastating gully erosion that has ravaged Water Tanker road in the community, sweeping away homes and schools.
Gatekeepers News reports that the erosion has rendered many residents homeless, with hundreds of houses lost over the years.
“We actually want to use this opportunity to call on political office holders from the State House of Assembly, the House of Representatives, the Senate, and the State Governor,” Dr. Chief Hakim U., a member of the AYC, said in a clip showing the significant impact of the gully on the community. “We are appealing to them to keep to their promise.”
He added, “We know what this area used to look like. 2/3 kilometres away, I know family members who have houses down there, and today we are here 2 kilometres away, we can’t access our people. I can recall that this road leads us to the prestigious Comprehensive High School, Auchi, and Rilfad, one of the foremost private secondary, post-primary secondary schools in Auchi, is also on this road.”
Roads and electrical poles have been affected, isolating communities and disrupting economic activity.
“Coming to this place, what we are seeing is terrible, and sort of an eyesore,” said Prince Alhaji Chalaman MKO Momoh. “It is emotional if I must say, because we are from Auchi, we know what this area used to look like.”
The AYC is pleading for urgent intervention from the All Progressive Congress (APC)-led government, which holds power at every level, to control the erosion, which is spreading rapidly.
“This is Water Tanker road, everybody knows this area,” said Comr. Muhammed Jamiu Garvin. “This is where the government of the day has received a lot of votes in the last election and subsequent elections that have been held. We are calling on the government to see how it can come to the aid of these people.”
“A lot of them are now IDPs (Internally Displaced Persons), and Landlords have become tenants in other people’s areas.”
They are also appealing to government agencies and personalities not to use the area as a tourist centre, but to take concrete steps to address the crisis.
As the gully erosion continues to spread, the community is holding its breath, hoping for a solution to this crisis.
