From Moshood Karim
Benin City witnessed a wave of protest as members of Ugu Youths for Developmental Change (UYDC) took to the streets on Monday and ended at the Press Centre of the Edo NUJ, alleging that Nigeria’s Minister of Regional Development, Abubakar Momoh, had commissioned a non-existent road in their community.
The protesters, led by their coordinator, Comrade Monday Osabueki-Omazenoghadue Osemwekhae, asserted that the so-called Abraka-Oben Road, recently inaugurated by the minister, does not exist within their locality. They condemned the act as a deliberate ploy to mislead the public while their community continues to suffer from infrastructural neglect.
“Our communities, spanning 17 settlements in Ugu Ward, have been sidelined for far too long,” Osemwekhae stated. “Instead of genuine development, we are witnessing an attempt to mask years of abandonment by falsely commissioning a road that exists only on paper.”
The youth group stressed the strategic importance of Oben, home to the largest gas deposit in West Africa, and criticised the Ministry of Regional Development and the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) for failing to improve the region’s infrastructure. They pointed out that while some roads, such as the Ugo-Obozogba-Iguelaba Road, are under construction through private and community efforts, other critical link roads remain in deplorable condition.
“The name ‘Oben’ has been used repeatedly to secure funding, yet we have seen no real impact. We call on President Bola Tinubu’s administration to change this narrative and ensure genuine development, rather than allowing the commissioning of imaginary projects,” the group stated.
Responding to the protest, the Chairman of the Edo State Chapter of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Dr Festus Alenkhe, assured the demonstrators that their grievances would be conveyed to the appropriate authorities for necessary action.
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