The Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) Enugu State Council has expressed deep concern over the repeated loss of lives on the Enugu-Onitsha expressway, following a fatal crash that occurred at Ugwu Onyama. The accident, which happened over the weekend, claimed the lives of three people and left several journalists injured.
The NUJ Chairman, Enugu State, Comrade Obinna Ogbuka, has condoled with the families of the deceased and wished the injured a speedy recovery. Ogbuka has also called for the speedy completion of the ongoing reconstruction work on the expressway to prevent such incidents in the future.
The accident involved multiple vehicles, including a black Toyota Sienna bus carrying journalists from the African Independent Television (AIT) and the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) to an official assignment in Igbo-Etiti Local Government Area. The deceased journalists have been identified as Chimaroke Ugwu, an NTA reporter and Chairman of the state NTA Chapel, alongside his cameraman Jerry, and Kelechi Ehirim, a reporter from AIT and Secretary of the state's Private Broadcast Chapel, and his cameraman Ifeanyi Ogbodo.
The dualisation of the expressway has been ongoing for over ten years, with no clear end in sight.
The Enugu-Onitsha expressway reconstruction project, which has been ongoing for over a decade, has become a stark example of Nigeria's inability to deliver on critical infrastructure projects. The NUJ's call for the speedy completion of the project is a reminder that the lives of Nigerians are being put at risk due to the government's failure to prioritize the completion of essential projects. The fact that journalists, who are supposed to be the voices of the people, have lost their lives in this accident is a grim reminder of the risks that Nigerians face on a daily basis. The government must take concrete steps to address the issue of infrastructure development and ensure that projects like the Enugu-Onitsha expressway are completed on time.
