Poor drainage cause of bad roads – Gwagwalada residents

By Jacinta Nwachukwu/Uche Bibilari

A cross-section of residents of Gwagwalada in the Federal Capital Territory on Saturday attributed the dilapidated state of roads in the area to poor drainage system.

The residents told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in separate interviews that the poor drainage system in the area was mainly responsible for clogged water channels and the resultant flooding of the roads.

Mr John Adejuwon, a medical doctor, said that for the roads to be in usable condition, water channels needed to be created just as the roads were being constructed.

“For a road to last long, there must be a gutter, if not, after the rain you will see water on the road and as cars keep plying the roads you will notice potholes on such roads,’’ he said.

Also speaking, Mr Mohammed Bello, a resident of old Kutunku, said that the old Kutunku road did not last up to a year because of poor drainage system.

He urged the Gwagwalada Area Council to cultivate the habit of evacuating waste on a daily basis in order to prevent the unnecessary accumulation of the materials for weeks.

He said that doing so would prevent the clogging water channels.

Bello also called for the sensitisation of residents to the need for them to manage disposable waste properly, saying that many of them were in the habit of dumping waste in drainage systems.

“Anytime it is raining you see people dumping their piled up waste into the gutters instead of them to dispose them at the provided locations.

“This is also one of the major reasons why flooding occurs in parts of the council.

“I think there should be sanctions on defaulters.

“More drainage systems and water channels should be constructed to avoid flooding,’’ he said.

Similarly, Mrs Lydia Ezike, a civil servant, told NAN that the attitude of many residents contributed to the clogging of water channels and drains as many of them were in the habit of disposing waste materials indiscriminately.

“The way some residents dispose their waste indiscriminately contributes to the blockage of some of the available drains in the council.

“During the rainy season all the waste materials find their way into the drainage system making it difficult for the free flow of water, a situation which results in flooding in parts of the council,’’ she stated.

She also called for the construction of more drains, where necessary, to aid the free flow of water.

Another resident, Mr Edozie Ezeanyika, said that the council needed to do a lot of work in the area of managing the drainage system in the area.

He said, “If the drainage system in the area is not given urgent attention, the entire area might experience serious flooding in due course.’’

He, therefore, appealed to the council Chairman, Mr Adamu Mustapha, to find a sustainable solution to the drainage system problem as it would go a long way toward making life less stressful for residents and other road users.