Just like every other day, I returned from school at late hours of the afternoon and witnessed a very tragic omen. A fatal accident occurred between a trailer and tricycle, where the trailer hit the tricycle which was at the corner of the road, such that it broke that portion of the tarred road deeply - I mourn the departed souls.
Since that very day, the broken portion of the road has continued to get worse because erosion washes the soil exposed and causes the coal tar to break gradually. This has resulted in cars driving at a very slow speed at this point because the slightest mishap could cause a damage. Meanwhile, this road is a major road in the heart of Akwaibom, Nigeria and there is meant to be an uninterrupted flow in vehicular movement. This very road damage poses a very serious challenge in the transportation of goods and services - this all comes back to a damage that happened in my town.
Also, another issue in my town is the abandonment of projects which is not fair. In my very place of residence, there's a street which precedes my house and severally, there have been projects where they begin and then stop halfway. First of such was the construction of a road because of the gallopy nature of the road - Construction companies would troop in with their machines, fill sand all over the place, level the sand for the next move to be made and then that ends it. They never return to complete the project they started. This has happened more than twice because after rain washes the sand off, the area returns to default and all that happens is the place being filled with sand without the finishing touch.
Additionally, as a residential area, it's kind of unsafe if there are no street lights to lit the area and give clear vision to people at night. So, in a bit to develop the area, the installation of solar powered street lights was initiated. From the beginning of the street, a pole with a solar lamp on top was installed but this development was not successful. They went far in the installation but after my house and a few others, they stopped. This is not completely elegant because after walking in light, gross darkness still awaits one at the end and that project lost its merits for me. The issue of abandoning projects is very peculiar to my town.
Another issue is the dump site near the road preceding my street. Wastes are not put in a container, rather, in a piece of land inches below the main road. The problem is whenever there's a downpour, it carries the wastes from the site and dumps it where ever. This is so nasty to look because sometimes the rain could drop the wastes on the main road and it's discomforting to road users especially pedestrians. If there are dump containers on that piece of land, such barbaric and unhealthy events wouldn't reoccur. The scattering of waste products is really a threat to the health of people living along that street and strenuous because people still have to go out and clean up their frontages if the wastes were before them.
Therefore, there has to be a proper check on the environmental conditions of our towns because there are issues that occur which could have an adverse effect on members of the town. For instance, the unlit part in my area - hooligans could take advantage of that opportunity and gang up there with the intention of taking advantage of that darkness to harm a person. Matters like this should be treated promptly by the government for the purpose of protecting lives and property. For this as a town, there should be togetherness in case there are collective contributions we could make for our little world to be a better place.
"Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much." - Helen Keller
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