Aba, the commercial hub of Abia State, South Eastern Nigeria has an estimated population of 2,534,265 as at 2016.

The commercial city known as Enyimba City (The Elephant City), is gradually turning into a forgotten city with zero government attention.

Aba used to be the manufacturing capital of the Old Eastern Nigeria. In fact, it is still the SMEs capital of the current Nigeria.

However, several years of lackadaisical leadership has thrown Aba into an economic coma, as administrative recklessness has brought about environmental and infrastructural decay.

The once glorious economic powerhouse of Nigeria is gradually going into oblivion, abandoned by her supposed leaders who have made the city now looking like IDP camps.

The Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu led administration in Abia state has tried to fix some decayed infrastructure, but the lack of seriousness and focus in the activities of the administration has made many believe that it is still business as usual.

Few days ago, Ikpeazu shifted the blame of the road infrastructural decay in Abia, especially Aba to the Federal Government of Nigeria when he lamented the poor state of Federal roads in the state.

Ikpeazu went on to appeal for immediate Federal Government intervention on the dilapidated Federal roads in the state.

He said that the poor conditions of the Federal roads have led his administration to build alternative roads to other states to reduce the negative effects.

Ikpeazu however expressed fear that despite his efforts, the state might be landlocked if nothing is done to salvage the situation of the Federal roads urgently.

He revealed that his efforts on the Osisioma-Owerrinta Highway (Old Aba-Owerri road) suffered a setback recently when the state got a letter from the Federal Ministry of Works to discontinue with an ongoing construction.

"We therefore appeal for immediate FGN intervention on these roads including Osisioma Owerrinta through the NNPC Depot in Osisioma where we have been stopped from continuing our work by the Federal Ministry of Works through a letter we received just yesterday," he said.

Ikpeazu expressed his deep concern for business owners in Abia stressing that urgent interventions are needed on all the dilapidated Federal roads as they affecting the economy of the state as well as causing untold hardship on users and business owners in the state.

"Given that our people have trade and commerce as their main source of livelihood, land locking Abia will amount to asphyxiation of our citizens.

"Save for the alternative new road we did between Akwa-Ibom and Aba through Ekwereazu, the plight of our traders would have been unimaginable," he lamented.

He noted that Abia as a State bordered by seven other States is replete with a number of federal roads cutting across the State into other States.

However, almost all of such roads are in a state of total disrepair, causing untold hardship to road users from across the country.

"I call for the urgent intervention of @NigeriaGov in revamping these roads which include: Aba-PH segment of Enugu-PH Highway, Aba-Ikot Ekpene & Umuahia-Ikot Ekpene Roads linking Abia to Akwa-Ibom and Cross River States, and Umuahia-Ohafia-Arochukwu Rd among others."

However, many Aba residents believe that Governor Okezie Ikpeazu is not helping matters. They said that it is unfortunate that Ikpeazu, an Aba boy, an Ngwa man, and a true son of the soil is watching the great Enyimba city, the home of made in Nigeria wear becoming a laughing stock in the league of cities in Nigeria.

So many questions are begging for answers on Aba: Can a city be called a commercial city without good roads? Does commerce thrive without good transportation system? And what is Ikpeazu doing about the so called state roads even if the Federal ones are bad?

Ezeh Emeka, a commercial bus driver who said he has been in Aba for the past 30 years described the situation of the city as pathetic.

In his words: "I don't like talking about things like this because before you know it some persons will start abusing you or threatening you.

"But what can I do? I'm getting seriously old already and as an Igbo man you know our people believe that once you're getting old and keep speaking the truth, God will elongate your life span.

"Aba that you see today is nothing compared to the proud Aba we all used to know. This city is gone. I did business here before I had problem and moved into bus driving.

"As a bus driver, I've never had it so bad in Aba like what I've seen in the past ten years which is gradually getting worst.

"A growing city should be developing new routes, new settlements for emerging population where vehicles should be plying and as well maintaining old ones.

"But in this current Aba, many old transportation routes are now unpassable while no new ones are being created to ease movement of goods in the ever busy city."

Emeka said that from the early 1990s down to 2005 and even as early as 2008, there were multiple routes vehicles can ply in Aba when conveying both visitors and residents to various business centres.

According to him, it is regrettable that today, some of those routes are not only closed for vehicular movement, but totally dangerous for vehicles and even pedestrians.

"Can a human being passed through the middle of Port Harcourt road, Ngwa road and Omuma road right now? If someone cannot see were to pass is it vehicles that will play such roads? Aba is gone my brother," he lamented.

Dennis Nnajiofor, a business man at the Eziukwu Market described the situation of Aba roads as horrific. He lambasted Ikpeazu for speaking against Federal roads.

He said, "What's the Governor talking about Federal roads? Why is cattle calling pot black? The Ekwereazu Akwa-Ibom road he said he constructed as alternative to Ikot-Ekpene Highway is already gone within just a year.

"The Osisioma-Owerrinta Highway (Old Aba-Owerri road) he said that Federal Ministry Works stopped him from continuing with the project, my opinyis that he is not working according to Federal standard.

"I remember that when they flagged off that road, they used a Chinese Company, but before you know it, the Chinese disappeared and everything is looking funny. So, before we claim Federal Government is disturbing us, we must ask the Government of Abia State if they're really doing the right thing on that road.

"Go to Ebonyi State and Rivers State, they're working of Federal roads. So, why will Federal Government ask Abia not to work theirs," he said

Nnajiofor said that most times when he visits other states and return to Aba, he feels bad. "I must tell you that what is still keeping Aba alive today is the inability of the neighbouring states to capture the secrets of what's happening here."

Nnajiofor said that as a trader with so many years of experience, he is currently losing more in Aba nowadays than he is gaining, as the city is not expanding commercial wise, but rather shrinking on daily basis.

He said that Aba is only expanding by the number of new buildings which are constructed by bringing down old existing structure and not moving into virgin areas to build.

"There are five local government areas in Aba: Aba North, Aba South, Osisioma, Ugwunagbo and Obingwa LGA. Now, tell me, out of all these LGAs how many motorable routes do we have?

"The four major roads in Osisioma LGA are: Ekeakpara road, Aba-Owerri road, ABSUTH/Udeagbala road and of course the Aba-Port Harcourt Highway are all in deplorable conditions.

"If you come to Aba South; almost all the major roads there are gone and taken over by water frogs. Ngwa road, Obohia road, Ohanku road, Port Harcourt road and Eziukwu road that's under construction are all dead.

"These roads connect buyers to three major important business hubs like Ahia-Ohuru, Cemetery Market and Alaoji spare parts market have become swamps.

"In Aba North, Osusu road, Omuma road, Old-Express road and other adjoining room so like Nwamkpa, Saint Eugene road, Adindu road, Power Line and Cemetery road are death traps.

"Ugwunagbo is in a hopeless situation and when you talk about Obingwa you look at the Aba-Ikot Ekpene road and Ururuka road. Although there are still other terrible roads, but what I gave you are the major ones.

"Even Faulks road that this current administration finished working on not up to two years now is dead and gone. So, what makes Aba a commercial city?

Nnajiofor said that insecurity is one of the reasons why Aba is not growing, adding that security agencies cannot penetrate through some terrible areas.

This situation he said has residents at the mercy of hoodlums who are aware that no help will come the way of the residents whenever they attack them.

"Have you not noticed that some people prefer to spend huge money to buy old buildings in the metropolis and rebuild than going into some of these area where lands are cheap to develop them?

"How can you go there when your property is not safe neither are you too safe? A place like Ugwunagbo and Obingwa should have benefited from Aba main town just like Idemili North LGA, Oyi LGA and Anambra East LGA have benefited from Onitsha main town.

"If you go to Nkpor, Nkwelle-Ezunaka, Ogidi, Nsugbe and even some parts of Obosi you will not differentiate between them and Onitsha. Good roads bring development.

"In Imo State, Owerri main town has swallowed parts of Mbaitoli and Ikeduru. You can hardly know the difference, but in Abia everything is just stagnant.

"The only thing that's still keeping Aba alive is its strategic location which nobody can take away. A city that lies in between Rivers State, Akwa-Ibom State and Imo State is strategically located to have visitors no matter what anyone does wrong or right."

He added that the inability of neighbouring states like Akwa-Ibom, Rivers, Enugu and Imo State to take advantage of poor governance in Abia is helping to keep Aba remain alive.

READ MORE: https://abacityblog.com/aba-a-commercial-city-of-sorrow-forgotten-abandoned-by-her-own-leaders/

Aba is a mess

This is terrible

Mods this should go to front page.
Aba is a pig farm.

A slap on the face of decency.

Half truth

The people in that part of the country prefer kerosene than infrastructural development. They are more concerned on happening in south west and north.

Illiterate Peoples of Biafra (Igbos) should demand better governance in Abia state.
You cannot be abusing Buhari when your Governors are doing dumb things.

Cyberterror:
Mods this should go to front page.
Aba is a pig farm.

A slap on the face of decency.

Are you trying to say that Biafra HQ is a shithole?

muykem:
The people in that part of the country prefer kerosene than infrastructural development. They are more concerned on happening in south west and north.

It is a pity. Aba hosts more than 2 million residents including rich businessmen.

How they manage to live in that squalor baffles me.

Moferere:


Are you trying to say that Biafra HQ is a shithole?

That's where Nnamdi Kanu grew up and he is saying nothing about it. Even PDP/IPOB senator Enyinnaya Abaribe is from Aba and if his place looks horrible like this, little wonder why most Igbos hate Biafra.

This needs fp. Evil leaders must be exposed!

Disgusting. They say they own Lagos and Abuja but their own place looks like a disease breeding camp.

Aba a giant commercial city made slum by hateful and jealous past governments.

Why is it that whenever someone wants to show that Aba is bad they post pictures of the same market again and again? I'm sure it's bad but I have my doubts as to whether it's worst than any other Nigerian city because I can find these images in any market.

Make I shake table small,done people dey laugh Aba while their own side na die

OruExpress:
Why is it that whenever someone wants to show that Aba is bad they post pictures of the same market again and again? I'm sure it's bad but I have my doubts as to whether it's worst than any other Nigerian city because I can find these images in any market.

There are such market in Delta here but clearly not Oleh and Ozoro Markets.

Some other people too

Cyberterror:
Mods this should go to front page.
Aba is a pig farm.

A slap on the face of decency.

pigs are the neatest animals in the world

fdigital:
Aba a giant commercial city made slum by hateful and jealous past governments.

of Ipob indigenous people?

Cyberterror:


It is a pity. Aba hosts more than 2 million residents including rich businessmen.

How they manage to live in that squalor baffles me.

Stop posting rubbish from your slum in Abeokuta...Aba is not made up few streets.

This is main Aba..

I know it will drive spear into your heart full of bitterness...

Nnamdi Kanu must read this...

PriestDaniz:
Make I shake table small,done people dey laugh Aba while their own side na die

Did you see any dirty environment there?

Those houses existed when your forefathers were still humping from one tree to another tree in the jungles of the Cameroon

Redcrafton:


Stop posting rubbish from your slum in Abeokuta...Aba is not made up few streets.

This is main Aba..

I know it will drive spear into your heart full of bitterness...

Lol, bird eye view is always good, show the street level of those places

helinues:
Nnamdi Kanu must read this...

Did Ganui Adams read anything about Ibadan and Abeokuta?

loopman:


Lol, bird eye view is always good, show the street level of those places

In your dreams you mean all the streets will be like posted?

Loopman you can do better than this

So with this picture, you will say all streets in an important city in SW is bad?

Redcrafton:


Did Ganui Adams read anything about Ibadan and Abeokuta?

Who is @ bolded? Is he a footballer?

Redcrafton:


In your dreams you mean all the streets will be like posted?

Loopman you can do better than this

Sharaaaappp! Let’s see the beautiful street view of Ariaria, Faulks road, Bata, Ph road, Ikot Ekpene road, ogbor hills, Eziama and all those slums in Aba

Redcrafton:


In your dreams you mean all the streets will be like posted?

Loopman you can do better than this

So with this picture, you will say all streets in an important city in SW is bad?

Fortunately, this is where your brothers live in Lawanson! Just like Ladipo and Alaba, you people are generally dirty like Aba

loopman:


Sharaaaappp! Let’s see the beautiful street view of Ariaria, Faulks road, Bata, Ph road, Ikot Ekpene road, ogbor hills, Eziama and all those slums in Aba

Shhuut iiitt! Tell me your state and I will list the streets you can check.

loopman:


Sharaaaappp! Let’s see the beautiful street view of Ariaria, Faulks road, Bata, Ph road, Ikot Ekpene road, ogbor hills, Eziama and all those slums in Aba

They also live in Ibadan and Abeokuta?

You need help bro to think clearly.